Truthful Child
by CatBru
Summary: In the attempt to save the royal family from temporal disaster, Pluto succeeds in saving only one. The only time they can go is when neither exist, a young girl hurts, and the ability to fix things is still within reach.
1. The End of Utopia

_**Truthful Child **_

_Working Title_

**Rating:** PG-13

**Legal/Personal Disclaimer:** I don't own them. If I did, there would have been even more angst in Sailor Stars. Also, I don't think Sailor Stars is in need of a rewrite as it is perhaps my favorite, but this would not leave me alone. This is neither to 'improve' the season, or hopefully to be worse, but is merely an alternate 'what if.' This is currently unbetad, so please forgive any mistakes. Also, I do not claim to know much about Japan or its culture. I was ten when we moved back to the states. Instead of believing that I am an inept monkey pounding on a keyboard, please take any and all inaccuracies as creative license.

**Summary:** In the attempt to save the royal family from temporal disaster, Pluto succeeds in saving only one. The only time they can go is when neither exist, a young girl hurts, and the ability to fix things is still within reach.

**Warning:** Temporary Character Deaths abound in this chapter.

(This was originally part of a series of drabbles I started but never finished. The next few chapters may have a few familiar paragraphs.)

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><p><em><strong>Chapter One<strong>__ – The End of Utopia_

The thing about running a peaceful planet that had not seen any major wars in a few centuries was that despite all the training was that there was little preparation that could actually prepare an army for war. King Endymion worried, often at night while his wife slept peacefully beside him, that there would be an occasion where their small system would be pulled into something that not even their heroes could triumph over. Alliances were crucial, especially for a kingdom as far removed from the heavy traffic other galaxies faced. Without them, a threat would not be realized until it was too late.

Princess Kakyuu, though a peaceful creature by design, came from a distant system that saw war all too frequently. Flanked by three Starlights, her sailor senshi, there was no doubting her promise for conflict should the border treaties between systems hinder her people's first chance at peace in centuries.

"Please, do not misunderstand me," the foreign princess said in a gentle tone. "I do not wish for it to come to any bloodshed. This is why I have come to you first, _before_ your treaty with the Delbians is finalized."

Serenity smiled warmly from her place beside him, and though it would look patronizing on other dignitaries, from her it was always perceived as it was intended, as genuine. "I never believed for a moment that you came here with only intentions for conflict." Then she leaned forward, a mix of curiosity and concern on her open face. "Please, I wish animosity with no one. What sort of compromise would you propose?"

To say that Serenity did not worry about threats would be an insult to his queen and wife both. She had fought constantly to protect what would become their kingdom in their youth, and still kept a wary eye for possible dangers. However, he had long ago promised that he would be the one to keep an avid eye on the whole scenario so that she could think only of peace and prosperity. Her skill for diplomacy and his for tactical made their ruling union a more synergetic endeavor. And, despite their youthful adventures, Serenity possessed an intense curiosity about people, familiar and foreign alike. She would ask about a person's daily routine, no matter how mundane, if she were allowed to.

So, while his wife was free to welcome and negotiate with little worry, Endymion cast a critical eye over their guests. One woman in particular caught his interest. She was regarding him in the same way he was her, as though the other had little hope of becoming an ally without first pleasing their respective monarchs. She was, based on the limited knowledge he had on the three Starlights, perhaps the dangerous one in the trio. The other two gave an aura of more control, a quiet deadly grace.

It was this one, though, that stood between them in height, with the ferocious gleam in her eyes that promised immediate death to anyone who even thought of harming her princess that set Endymion on alert. He had seen that look so many times before, both in the face of his queen's own senshi and the mirror.

The silent showdown was one that could not be won, but Endymion maintained eye contact for longer than would be acceptable in a casual perusal of faces. Neither blinked, and as they continued their battle of will, neither noticed that they were becoming more noticeably tense to those closest to them.

If he had not been so engrossed in his stare off, he would have noticed that Princess Kakyuu was the first of the two monarchs to realize what was happening. He missed her look of shock and worry, as though afraid this would reflect poorly on her. He also missed Serenity's bemused expression as she exchanged looks with the princess.

He noticed nothing of this until he felt her small hand rest lightly over his own. Keeping an eye on the foreign senshi for as long as he could, he turned to look at his wife.

"You're being overly cautious, Love," she murmured softly as she brushed the back of her fingers across his jaw. Centuries later, despite how much she had changed, one thing that had remained the same was her unashamed and open displays of affection. Less enthusiastic in public, yet still as rib bruising when they had no visitors. More loudly this time, so that their visitors would not feel as though they were intruding, she added, "This is a meeting for peace, but understandably, some of us are a bit protective."

"It is no burden to have those that care for our well being," Princess Kakyuu responded, visibly calmer. "Starfighter has been by my side since the beginning."

Though he had never been one to overtly display his own affection, Endymion leaned into her touch. The monarchs began their deliberations again, continuing as though the interruption had never occurred.

His attention was soon caught by very minute movement to the left. His daughter, standing next to the other senshi, was trying her best to stand still, but her legs had fallen asleep causing her to shift from one foot to another. She noticed his look and blushed, trying to remain still and appear as strong as any senshi.

Sailor Moon, Small Lady, Chibiusa, Usagi. It didn't matter what she was called or what role she played, she was Endymion's daughter. More importantly, she was the daughter of his wife. He hoped there was not a day where he looked at her and did not remember the small little girl who begged him for bedtime stories. Selfishly, it was mainly because of her that he hoped no war would see this Solar System during their reign. If so, his daughter, being Sailor Moon, would be at the front and either lead them to victory or fall trying. If they lost her, he was not sure how either Serenity or himself could pull through the devastation.

Offering a small smile, invisible to most, he discreetly shifted his knees. Blushing, his daughter returned his smile, more broad and as blinding as her mothers, as she made a show of shifting her legs. She had asked him, a few days after the first time she had stood in on these meetings, how people who stood still for so long did not keel over. Endymion had explained the subtle shifting of joints to encourage circulation and how locking them was generally what caused such catastrophes in the first place.

The meeting ended not long after, and their guests were shown to the wing where their rooms were. They would stay another few days to strengthen plans made. The Sailor Senshi left to continue their training, leaving Endymion to escort his wife to the library. Officially, they would be discussing matters at length. Unofficially, she would curl up against his side and indulge in a quick nap while he went through the official requests of the outer lying provinces.

**xoxoxox**

An intense pain shot through his chest. Dimly, he recalled the medical training he had received in college and wondered if this was a heart attack. Then a sense of dread filled him, and he knew that whatever it was, a heart attack would be welcome in comparison.

Endymion tried not to let the pain show, tried to continue down the hall with his wife as they made their way to lunch. They would eat, and then after that, they would enjoy a leisurely afternoon in the gardens. They would probably argue over whether or not Princess Kakyuu was as trustworthy as Serenity believed her to be, or if the aliens were hiding behind an unknown agenda for more land and power. Serenity would say that they should always trust people until they gave them a reason not to, and he would counter that if they had not been at least a little cautious over the centuries, the Solar System would have been dominated and turned into a dictatorship by a green smurf with a grudge. After dinner, when Small Lady was finished with her training, the three of them would sit in the library and drink cocoa in front of the fireplace. Then he and his wife would retire to their bedroom. It would be a regular day, encased in familiarity and peace. It would be living.

Hot thorns swept through his chest, brutally searching for something there and tearing at everything in its way. Unable to keep up the facade any longer, he cried out as his steps faltered and his hand latched tightly around Serenity's wrist.

"Endymion?" Serenity followed him down as his knees buckled and collapsed beneath him. "What is it? What's wrong? What should I do?"

His grip on her shoulders was probably painfully tight, his knuckles white, though she gave no protest. Looking at her, he felt s sense of dread that nearly overshadowed the pain. He had not truly felt mortality in centuries, except perhaps for the time when the Dark Moon waged war against them, but he tasted it now, bitter on his tongue. Would this be the last time he saw her? Had he already seen the last of his daughter? Panic coiled through the pain, and despite having been with her for far longer than many countries had been in existence, there still had not been enough time.

A flash of purple and green caught his eye just beyond Serenity. Pluto was running toward them, the look in her eyes telling him that this was much worse than he believed.

Then the entire world shook.

"Go get Small Lady." When she looked ready to protest, he cut her off with a quick reassurance. "I'll be fine, just go get her."

Finally, Serenity nodded. With one last look, she stood and sprinted toward the training ground.

"What is it, Pluto?"

"Something has happened to change history." The tall woman took a strong stance beside him.

"What happened?"

She did not answer at first. Bringing her staff up in a wide arc, she slammed the tip into the ground. Only after they were engulfed in a transparent sphere of purple and gold did she respond. "You died."

**xoxoxox**

The echo of her footsteps down the corridor could barely be heard over the trembling earth. Serenity paid attention to neither of these, desperate to get her daughter and return to Endymion. Despite his assurances, something within her knew that there was a change about to come his way.

The toe of her shoe caught in a widening crack, and though she did not fall, the few seconds it took to regain her balance possibly saved her from being crushed by the large piece of broken ceiling that crashed where she would have been. Taking a startled step back, Serenity tried to find a way about the quartz obstacle. When her eyes passed over the window, the queen gasped in horror.

The palace, while crumbling around her, was the least affected by the horror she saw. Their once pristine land, full of trees and life, was slowly disintegrating in an ever changing fluctuation. Different scenes carved themselves into the growing wasteland, and once she could even make out the tattered banners of the Delbian empire, caked in dried blood and dirt. Finally, after the land shifted again and again, it slowly disintegrated to rubble, drifting in absolute nothingness. Their utopia was turning to dust before her eyes.

Climbing over the boulder, Serenity forced herself to think only of her daughter. She would mourn the loss of her people once she was certain her family was safe.

"Mamma!" Her daughter's cry sent relief through the queen as she turned. Sailor Moon ran toward her, dodging the falling detritus. "Mamma, something's wrong. Everyone disappeared during training."

"I know." Serenity failed to keep the fear from her voice. She grabbed her daughter's wrist and turned back the way she came.

Sailor Moon followed without complaint for the first few seconds. Then, without warning, she slowed her pace, trying to pull them back in the opposite direction. "Mamma wait, we need to stop this!"

"We will, but we need to get to your father first."

"Papa? Why, what's wrong with him?"

When Serenity did not answer, the girl picked her pace up again. This time, it was Serenity struggling to keep up.

Minutes later they reached the corridor where she had last seen her husband. Pluto was with him, concentrating on keeping a barrier between them and time.

Endymion saw them both, and his usual calm demeanor was gone as the relief he felt radiated from his face. He stood despite the pain and reached toward his family.

**xoxoxox**

Death was never the same way twice. Mamoru realized this as he saw his soul ripped from his body.  
><em>How long? How long until she discovers I'm not coming home?<em>

The countenance of his enemy, so sharp and clear before, slowly blurred as one by one, everything drifted away. There was no more pain, no more worry. All he regretted was that he would not have the chance to love her more.

"_Usako."_

Then there was nothing.

**xoxoxox**

Endymion choked back the scream as he watched his daughter disappear, his fingers shaking as his hand stretched to where she had been only seconds before. One moment, she was running toward him, passing her mother even with much shorter legs. Then, she had simply ceased to exist, worse than the fading memory of a dream.

Serenity stumbled, dress rippling as her knees shook from what she had just seen. The same horror and grief he felt shone in her eyes. "No," he heard her soft cry.

A violent tremor tore through the castle, this time breaking the walls and bringing down the pillars around them. Wind tore through the emptiness, whipping around debris and dust, none of which he would even allow himself to think of having once been his only child. Cracks ruptured the floor, spider-webbing across the stone as large chunks of the ground broke away from each other, anchored by nothing and drifting slowly. His strangled cry broke Serenity out of her shock as she moved forward again.

"Pluto, let me out of here, I have to get her," he demanded as he stepped forward, preparing to drag her wife to safety if he must.

"_No!_" The senshi's harsh voice stopped him where he stood. "If you leave here, time will catch up with all of us."

The ground beneath the queen crumbled around her feet. Serenity leaped from the last floating rock, hand stretched toward his.

"_Serenity,_" Endymion gasped as he reached toward her, willing the bubble to extent just a little bit further. He could not lose her, too.

"Come on, you can make it." Their fingertips were so close that if they breathed they would touch, but just when he was feeling a moment's hope, his wife began to slowly drift away. "No! Pluto, do something!"

The Timekeeper's voice cracked when she responded, the emotional and physical strain evident. "I'm trying, but there's just... I can't..."

He was no longer listening. The winds of time crumbling around them whipped even through the strong barrier, and he could only watch as it battered and pounded against his wife's body. Above the tempest's roar, he heard her call to him. "_Endymion._"

The he watched as the air of time around her shifted, and her eyes and face grew younger, silver hair darkening to honey. Eyes that he had not seen in over a millennia grew wide with fear as the rapid decent of age slowed to a stop. "_Mamo-chan?_"

Before he could respond, time once again picked up. In horror, he watched as she aged much faster than she should, as a crystal around her body shattered and splintered beyond repair. A keening wail started slowly as her hair turned gray, not silver, as she shriveled in on herself with age and heartache. The noise was deafening, louder even than the buffeting winds around them, when she finally turned to ash before his eyes.

It was not until the winds stopped, when everything outside the protective bubble merely ceased to exist, that he realized the sound came from his own throat.

**-End Chapter One**

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><p><em>End Notes: I had some uncertainty as to which character I should classify this under. In the end, I decided that while Endymion was a main character, Mamoru was what the story was about. So this is classified as a UsagiMamoru story. Also, I do plan on fixing things. I promise. Maybe a little._

_Also, expect sporadic updates. My current semester work load is atrocious, but I intend on writing this or my other nonsailormoon story as ways to defeat quadratic equations and Gilgamesh when they try to beat me upside the head with their sharp pointy smarticleness._

_Last, this story is going to get weird before it gets better. By weird, I mean 'wtf kind of drugs are you on, Cat?' weird._


	2. To The Beginning

**Rating:** PG-13

**Legal Disclaimer:** I don't own them. Still not Betad. I do not claim to know much about Japan or its culture. I was ten when we moved back to the states. Instead of believing that I am an inept monkey pounding on a keyboard, please take any and all inaccuracies as creative license.

**Summary:** In the attempt to save the royal family from temporal disaster, Pluto succeeds in saving only one. The only time they can go is a time where neither exist, a young girl hurts, and the ability to fix things is still within reach.

**Notes:** I recieved a very good question in a review, but alas I could not fit the explanation here. Hopefully by next chapter. Also, I know its a fast update, but I won't be updating nearly this often or frequent. The rest of the story is in small snips here and there, and there is still a lot to write, and I pretty much had this section finished for a few months now.

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><p><em><strong>Chapter Two –<strong>__ To The Beginning_

Dust puffed out from under them as the sphere landed in the middle of a run down shack. After all the noise they had just escaped, the sudden silence roared in his ears.

The sphere pulsed around them before collapsing, and the last air of his home dissolved in the tepid humidity. Pluto sagged to the floor, bearing her weight against the long staff as a bead of perspiration dripped from her nose. Closing her eyes, she concentrated on the new flow of time, reacquainting herself with a phenomena beyond that of minutes and seconds. "We are off by a month."

Endymion slowly lifted his head. Nothing seemed quite real. He was encased in a glass jar, giving everything on the outside a surreal sense. He lifted his hands before him, noticing the dirt that caked his usual pristine gloves.

"If we are to fix this, I will need time to rest. I...do not know how much time I will need."

Pluto's voice filtered sluggishly through his ears and into his brain, and he looked up at her in confusion. "Where are we?" The words were thick in his throat.

Black boots filled his vision, and when he looked up to see her towering over him, he could not help but wonder how someone so tall and regal could look so broken.

"You must rest," she whispered as she knelt, taking him by the arm. He followed her up, limbs protesting. She silently led him to a room to the side, as run down as the rest of the place. "We will stay here for the night. Tomorrow we will do reconnaissance and see what we must do."

The old mattress smelled of must and earth, soiled over years of misuse. Endymion stared down at it, eyes tracing the contours of questionable stains. Pluto moved around him as she dressed the mattress with threadbare linens.

Pluto had to guide him as though he were a small child, moving his hands to the buttons of his coat, then his shirt. Each article of clothing were folded neatly on the warped end table beside his bed, the dirtied gloves resting on top. Staring at those, his eyes burned. _Serenity's not going to let this opportunity to tease me slide. _His vision blurred at the edges as he turned to look at Pluto, wondering what she would have him do now.

For an instant, she just looked at him in return before turning her head away, breath choked in her throat. She left him, then, toward the bathroom. He heard water running and the creaking of ancient hinges.

When she returned, her eyes were rimmed with red. She placed a glass in one hand, and two pills in the other. "These will help you sleep."

He did not care what the pills were. They could be simple sleeping pills, which would likely lull him into a light doze that would trap him in nightmares, or cyanide tablets, which would take them away. He knew which he would prefer, but he didn't think she would want to know. So he took them, chasing them down with the acrid water.

She set the empty glass next to the stack of his clothes and gently forced him to sit on the mattress. Endymion stared up at her for the long minutes it too for the pills to take effect. Drowsiness was first, and each blink was a struggle. Pluto nudged his shoulders, attempting to lay him on the mattress, but panic surged through his medication induced exhaustion.

"I...I need..." his eyes darted around in confusion as he struggled, needing to sit up. His eyes darted around the room, trying to find something. "Serenity?" Where was she, why wasn't she here?

"We'll bring them back," Pluto vowed, voice course with a fierce vehemence. "I swear to you, we will find a way."

The fight left him, exhaustion pulling him down to the mattress. She pulled a thin sheet over him, tucking the edges securely around his body. Before she left, her fingers brushed over his cheeks, and then she was gone.

Pulling the pillow from under his head, he clutched it to him as he turned to face the wall. The material was too course, the density too soft, and his throat ached with the scream that would never come.

For the first time since his wedding, so many hundreds of years ago, Endymion slept alone.

xoxoxox

The couch was old, had been in the tiny shack years before Setsuna had taken residence in the larger house on the property. It had been the only place that she knew would be safe. Dimly, Pluto remembered once having made plans to redecorate the tiny shack, turning it into a guest house. There had been dreams for it once, and they even went so far as daring to imagine a safe haven for her princess when the younger girl just wanted a quiet place to escape to.

Now, Pluto did not know what would become of any of this. Her time line was destroyed, obliterated by an enemy she did not yet know. She should not _be,_ and they only existed here because of displacement and as anomalies in the strands of time, echoes that should have faded. It was only her impertinence to save those she loved more than her own life that they were here now, and why she had not blinked out of existance.

She had failed in her mission to keep the royal family safe. Her queen and princess were dead, and she doubted her king could survive the loss. He was a strong leader, the perfect counterpart to his wife, but it had been his family that had given him that strength. Pluto could only stay strong because she knew her king needed her to be. He needed to mourn, and while they would have little time to do so, she vowed to give him as long as she could. Her ladies deserved no less.

The failure, and the shame of it, burned brightly in her chest. Pluto should have gotten to them more quickly, should have sensed what was wrong sooner, even if only by a few minutes. Seconds could have made all the difference. But she could not, and now everything was wrong because of her inability to do her duty.

Heart aching, she curled into her knees, hiding her mourning from the empty room.

xoxoxox

_There was, of all things, a thread that led from her to a closet. It shimmered in the pale light of her room, shifting from a bright amber to a more rusted copper the closer it was to the door. _

_Usagi could not look in the closet. Of all the things she knew in the world, the one that screamed in the back of her mind was that she should not look in there. Even as it beckoned to her, making her fingers itch with curiosity, to open it would result in catastrophe._

"_You...won't like it there." The small, familiar voice caused Usagi to spin around. Chibiusa was with her, shifting from Senshi to Princess, from school uniform to dress. The girl kept changing, features blurring and shifting ever so slightly, yet even when the girl looked nothing as she should, Usagi still knew her as Chibiusa._

"_What's happening?" There was a feeling on the air. Loss and death swirled around her in a choking miasma, and if it weren't for the girl with her, she would have run._

_Chibiusa suddenly leaped forward, wrapping her arms tightly around Usagi's waist. "Don't let him go. Don't let him be lost. You have to watch him!"_

"_Watch who? What are you talking about? What's wrong?" She tried to pull the sobbing girl away, to see her face. Then she could see, could know, what it was that frightened the child so much. But the grip around her middle grew stronger._

"_Keep the truthful child safe."_

_Before Usagi could ask who her future daughter meant, the closet rattled and a loud bang echoed from the other side. Both jumped, and as Usagi stepped toward it to see what was behind there, something she would never do while awake, Chibiusa tugged her back. "No! You can't know what's there yet! Just watch over him!"_

_Usagi ignored the girl, drawn toward the door. Her hand reached for the handle as the pounding got louder. Gripping the knob, she pulled it back._

A weight landing on her legs caused Usagi to shriek as she flailed on her bed. Luna, who had just hopped through the window, yowled as she toppled off the mattress.

"Luna, you scared me!" Heart pounding in her chest, Usagi wondered if she would be able to sleep through the adrenaline rush. Her eyes were wide open, senses on alert, and she knew that there would be no sleeping for at least a half hour.

"_I_ scared _you?_" Luna hopped on the bed, sitting on the edge as she glowered. "I'm the one who was thrown! I thought you were having a fit!"

Sighing, Usagi pulled her knees to her chest, propping her head up as she looked at the cat. The dream, or nightmare, was slowly fading away, but the urgency in Chibiusa's voice rang through her mind. "I'm sorry."

Luna padded over the covers toward the young teen, resting her paws beneath the girl's knees before pressing a small damp nose against the curve of a cheek. "Usagi, are you really okay?"

For one brief moment, the cat was sure that her charge, chewing her lower lip and wringing the hem of her pajamas as she could not make eye contact, would open up, would tell her what troubles had been plaguing the young girl for far too long. Then Usagi looked up, a mask of happiness and joy on her face. "I'm fine, Luna. It was just a weird dream, that's all. I barely even remember it."

Luna just stared at the girl, feline eyes glowing in the moonlight. Then she heaved a sigh and leaped onto the windowsill and back out into the night.

Usagi did not know why she just didn't tell people. They knew she missed Mamoru, that was perhaps so blatantly obvious that someone who didn't know her would guess. She would be fine with just missing him. It was the silence that was hurting the most. He had warned her that he probably couldn't answer back right away, but it had been so long since he'd left. But she wanted to be strong, for him and everyone else, because she needed to prove to people that she could do this and others had it so much more harder, even if it meant nights where she could barely hold onto her sanity.

The phone was at her ear before she realized it. Pressing redial, her breath held tight in her chest, a part of her wished that _this_ time would be different. An illogical fantasy that she hardly acknowledged, where he just showed up one day. _Surprise, Usako. Did you miss me? Sorry, a flock of carrier pigeons destroyed all of my information, and it was as though I was never accepted. Then I had to travel back by steam boats, so I couldn't exactly call you. You're not disappointed I'm home early, are you?_ Instead, she got the same emotionless message, asking her to leave her name and he would call her back, and she had to laugh at her own ridiculous daydream otherwise she'd break.

Which she couldn't do, because she was _strong._

The door creaked open behind her. At first, she thought of her dream and believed that whatever had been in the closet there was now out to get her here. Spinning on her chair, she prepared herself for whatever would come.

Instead, Chibi-Chibi stood, tiny and afraid, in the doorway. It was becoming a habit with the young girl, but one that Usagi was not about to break. Especially tonight.

"Another nightmare?" The small girl nodded. "Come here."

The bed, still warm from when she woke earlier, cocooned them both. Usagi was able to fall asleep in a fog of the fresh clean scent of children and olives.

xoxoxox

There was no easy drift into consciousness. No gentle prodding on the rare day when he would wake up last, or silken strands of hair tickling his nose when he was not. One moment, Endymion was asleep and wrapped in the nightmare of memory, and the next he was staring at a stark wall with peeling paint.

Dressing was a process of muscle memory, and he glared at his fingers as they shook while buttoning his cuffs. He would have to get used to the fact that no one else would stand in front of him in the mornings, checking for invisible creases. He would no longer have to pretend to forget those last buttons, if only to feel her soft skin against his wrists as she did them, teasing that forgetfulness was a sign of old age.

Ignoring the shabbiness of the sparse room, he straightened his jacket and strode into the living area. Pluto was awake, busy at work wiping years of grunge from the kitchen sink. Despite the futility of the task, the surrounding counters and cupboards appeared cleaner than they had any right to be. He doubted she slept much at all through the night.

"Where are we?" The question he remembered from last night no longer carried the sound of confusion. It was harsh, more than he intended.

Pluto flinched, the closest she would come to jumping at the shock of his voice. "We are in a shack on Setsuna's property."

"Won't she notice we're here?"

Her pause mid scrub caught his attention. The suds beneath the scrubbing pad were brown and flecks of grime slithered over bubbles and into foam. She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye before quickly resuming her cleaning.

"Setsuna no longer exists in this time." The movements of her hand against the metal was slower, less hurried. "Without her dying in the future, the queen could not have had her reincarnated in the past to fight alongside Sailor Moon and the others. What you see around you are echoes of her existence. She was never here, technically, but people and places remember her. If she were to be completely removed, time would unbalance itself. Time...heals itself. Or tries to."

"How can you know for certain? Did you go out while I slept?"

Pluto shook her head. "Only to the main house to get clothes. I wasn't sure, not completely. But I found that folder." She gestured toward the table, and the pink file was thick with papers, and he could see crayon scribbles on some of the edges.

He didn't want to look, knowing what he would find, but Endymion was drawn to the table anyway. He opened the folder and had to look away as panic clawed through him, legs tingling with the urge to run. But he swallowed it down and forced himself to see what was there.

The top sheet was a crude drawing of Setsuna, after she had been reincarnated. He could tell it was her because of the green hair and red eyes, but that was about it. The caption at the top instructed the student to draw their best friend. Beneath the picture was the neater handwriting of his daughter, naming the person as 'Puu.'

Next was an illustration of Usagi, again only discernible by the yellow blobs on top of her head. Chibiusa had taken artistic license and had drawn fangs and demonic eyes, and apparently his daughter had feared a hungry Usagi.

"She got her artistic ability from her mother, I see."

Behind him was a strangled sound, and he preferred to believe it was her choking back a laugh.

"Would you like to keep those?"

The sheet below, still mostly hidden except for the instructions, told the young artist to draw her family. He straightened the pile and closed the folder without looking any further. "No. These are your memories, not mine."

Silence laid thick in the room, save for the wet scratching of the scouring pad against metal. Endymion knew he should feel some sort of relief that his daughter had not merely existed anywhere save his memories, but all that existed was the bittersweet taste of regret.

Though the folder now hid the drawings from his sight, his fingers still ran across bends and wrinkles, testament to how treasured the illustrations were to the senshi of time. For a stretch of time, the only sound was that of her furious scrubbing, the scratch of steel wool against metal grating on his ears and tearing his nerves.

"Can you do that another time?" Endymion's tone was sharp, and though he wished he had not snapped, the sudden pit of anger in his chest refused to allow an apology to escape.

The noise was replaced by a suffocating silence that only fueled his irritation. With a sharp pound of his cane, he turned toward the window to stare out at the bare tree in the yard. It looked half dead, the wiry branches stretching desperately toward the sun just out of reach behind taller buildings and an overcast sky.

"I have nothing that would fit you," Pluto said, breaking the silence and bringing him out of his mind. "I do not think it would be wise for you to wander...as you are now." Then, there was sound once again as she hurried from the table to the counter, busying herself with work. "I will go buy you a change of clothes, then if you wish you are welcome to come with to buy something more...appropriate."

She was coddling him, walking around his sharp edges with gentle feet. It annoyed him more than he wished to admit, and the desire to break something was strong.

Then she was gone, with words suggesting a warm bath or to sit in the yard, but he heard none of these. Instead, he sat at the table and stared at the folder. The only thing that saved it from being shredded was that it held the remaining traces of his daughter.

xoxoxox

The shopping trip was put on a short hiatus as Pluto entered the local library to do some minor research. Had Mamoru's absence been noticed by anyone? Though her resources were limited, the facility's computers were adequate to bypass the rudimentary security on the American school's computer system. Fifteen minutes later, she had a benign worm set up to locate any and all paperwork and email regarding the status of Mamoru.

_Student Mamoru Chiba failed to arrive at his scheduled time. _This phrase, and others like it, were common in what she discovered. _With no next of kin listed, student's belongings have been placed in temporary storage._

After some more reading, Pluto found herself becoming increasingly annoyed. Apparently, though Usagi had been placed on his contact list in case of an emergency, the _only_ contact on the list, no one had made the attempt at contacting someone who was 'just the girlfriend.' A few inquiries were made within the office, but apparently no one could be bothered to further investigate. Chiba was, to them, just another number on a long list of numbers, and one that was all too easily replaced.

Taking a moment to compose herself, she backtracked his would-be tracks to the airport. He had successfully checked aboard, but that was as far as his actual whereabouts went. No one cared for how many left the plane, so long as there were no bodies. However, there were two suitcases from that flight that was checked into the lost and found. Her king had always been a fastidious individual, and would have made absolute certain that his belongings were well within reach in a foreign environment. So that left the time of his disappearance sometime during the flight. There was no reports of a missing passenger, however, and without a list of who was on the flight, there was no way she could fill in the missing pieces. Acquiring the list would not be a problem, for the internet was full of erroneous information if one knew where to look. It was the people factor that made her pause. Who would know best, the person sitting beside him, or the flight attendant who offered cookies to a man who disappeared mid flight?

With a sigh, she printed off the list of passengers and flight attendants anyway. Nothing would likely come of it, but it would be something to do to keep her from going completely insane.

The contents of the list, and how to approach her king, kept her mind occupied as she browsed the local clothing store. Her patriarch was in a tremulous place, and she was afraid that one wrong move would send him spiraling some place that she would be unable to bring him back from. She had seen moods similar in him, and the only person to ever be able to bring him out of it had been his wife. The only time Pluto had feared for him had been during the attack of the dark moon kingdom, when his daughter was missing and his wife just barely out of death's reach. Add to that his injury, and many times she found herself disobeying the rules by leaving her post just to make certain he had not done anything any of them would later regret.

Absently, she placed her purchases down on the counter. The attendant raised an eyebrow at the unusual assortment of clothing; not so much that they were men's clothes, but that they obviously would not fit her slender frame. Barely bothering to glance up, Pluto said the first thing that came to mind to avoid any unwanted attention. "My boss had an incident with coffee. And he has a meeting this afternoon."

As she left, she wondered which king she would be faced with on her return. Would it be the lost little boy from the night before, or the angry man she left not long ago? Neither prospects were preferable, yet either were the only two she would face. Unless he had already progressed in the stages of grief, those two would be around for a good long while.

_**-End Chapter Two **_


	3. Misconceptions and Heartache

**Rating:** PG-13

**Disclaimers:** I don't own them. I do not claim to know much about Japan or its culture. I was ten when we moved back to the states. Instead of believing that I am an inept monkey pounding on a keyboard, please take any and all inaccuracies as creative license. Also, I honestly like Seiya. While I do not agree with the pairing myself, I am an unabashed fan at unrequited love in any form. Also, I apologize for any characterization booboos. These are, for the most part, how characters come across to me. Oh, and still not betad. I have yet to lasso me one of those for this story.

**Summary:** In the attempt to save the royal family from temporal disaster, Pluto succeeds in saving only one. The only time they can go is a time where neither exist, a young girl hurts, and the ability to fix things is still within reach.

**Author's Notes: **Ha, well...heh. We're getting close to the weirdness that I mentioned in chapter one. And I mean its a weird plot twist. We'll probably be coming to it either this or the next chapter. I only say this because I've received some _awesome_ reviews, and I don't want to disappoint. But, on the same token, this weird and strange twist is something that just would not let me go, and I am finding myself more deeply entrenched within it. All I ask is that y'all stick around for at least a little bit longer. (AM, yes it was you, and you were eerily close with the third option. As for the closet, its more symbolism than foreshadow, I guess? Hee! And hopefully your other question was explained in here. I kind of wrote it when I was tired, to get in the mindset of Pluto at that time, but that could have backfired.)

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><p><em><strong>Chapter Three - <strong>Misconceptions and Heartache_

There was only so much of the same four walls in a day a man could take, especially those with as much peeling and disrepair as the ones he had been surrounded by. He kept to the shadows, pressing close against walls as he tried to find anything to take his mind away from his body. Pluto was asleep, having fallen into an exhausted slumber on the couch after she handed him the clothes he now wore and told him what she had found at the library.

It troubled Endymion, more than he would like to admit. Here he was, in a time he should not be, in a place he no longer existed in. He was technically dead, the only thing stopping time from catching up and rightfully wiping him out of existence was Pluto's sheer will to disobey the laws she had followed for countless millenia.

He had asked her, just before exhaustion finally claimed her, why _then._ Why did it have to be during a time when he was at his happiest. By all he knew of time, he simply should have ceased to exist. Her explanation, though probably full of the same logic he had clung to his whole life, made his head swim.

"Time," she had begun, pulling a rubber band from her pocket. "Is not as fixed as people think. You of all people should know that time can be changed. Some events, like a person leaving a building a few minutes earlier than they should, does not adversely affect time. Time will fix itself by causing another person to leave a few minutes later than they normally would. This person would speed just a little bit faster, and the person who left too early would have to dodge out of the intersection. The time it takes for that person to gather her things would make up for the minutes lost."

Endymion had opened his mouth to speak, brows already furrowed in confusion, when Pluto held up her hand. She then pulled the rubber band taught, and kept pulling as she spoke. "Some events, however, are too catastrophic for time to simply make up for. Your daughter already greatly messed with the infinite paths entwining your future when she came back the first time. More events were altered when she came back a second time. Fixed points were set along the path of time, in the past _and_ in the future. So that the universe would not immediately collapse, time started to affect its flow at a point beyond where these events occurred."

The rubber band snapped, the two ends twisting in the air as it fell before the snapped against the middle. "Now, instead of immediately erasing itself, time is attempting to fix what has been broken. In this case, the death of Chiba. Perhaps we are here for that cause. Perhaps we are anomalies that managed to slip through the crumbling cracks. Either way, all around us time is being affected and it will fight until it either corrects itself or snaps under the pressure."

"But you said earlier that Setsuna was never technically here." He could not bring himself to speak his daughter's name, not then. And not after Pluto all but accused his child of causing the temporal mess in the first place. Though that was not how she intended it, he knew, it was how the ever rising irrational part of his brain chose to perceive it.

"She wasn't. Right now, there are echos of the other time line taped into place. Otherwise there would be gaping holes all around us."

Hours later, her explanation still made his head ache. He had wondered, as she finally drifted to sleep, if she had lacked the proper coherency to voice her thoughts clearly, or if his knowledge of time was truly as inept as he feared it to be.

Endymion was in the park before he realized he had entered it. Memories twirled in the air around him, of times before royal titles and events so dull and boring that even he faked sickness. He remembered, quite clearly, sitting on that bench beneath the tall oak countless times, just sitting beside a younger Serenity, his young Usako.

She was still here, alive, and without the knowledge of what had happened. He could imagine no other way than the one he knew. The way he remembered, he had spent countless hours rereading her letters when homesickness got to be too great. He would steal scant seconds to scribble a line or two down on his own letter during the endless lectures he attended. There was not a week he had not sent at least two letters, and often times when the work load was less than anticipated, he had to refrain from making multiple trips to the mailbox in one day. That was how he remembered his year abroad.

None of that happened and the Usagi of now was not his Serenity, just a possibility in his lady's life.

As though knowing he were thinking of her, Usagi materialized several yards away as she came in to view, giggling with her friends. Pressing himself against the tree, he watched her as she moved. She lacked all the grace and regality that a queen should have, something that would change somewhat over time, but the ever present love for life was still there. It hurt, a physical ache that clenched tight within his chest, just to look at her. As he stood from his vantage point, watching as she laughed one second and yelled at Mars the next, he could not help but wonder how _none_ of them realized how much of an act it all was. The slight hesitation when she spoke, the dull of the normal shine in her eyes when she laughed at something Venus said, or the forced exuberance of her wail when Mercury likely suggested they do homework.

"Hey, Odango!" That voice, using an all too popular nickname that Endymion had first begun using several millenia ago, sent irritation flooding through his system. Already he hated the cocky swagger of the young teen sauntering up to the group. Their voices were soon lost, but clearly there was a sort of argument going on. There was something familiar about the younger man, even as the sheer alien quality of his appearance confused Endymion. Something was off about him, not quite right, and it sent his paranoia on high alert.

He wanted to go demand this young pursuer to stay away, but that meant talking to her, explaining why and how he was there. He could not bear the first, and the second would devastate her.

Besides, it was not as though she were his, anyway. She was just a fluke, an echo of what should not be. She was nothing.

He turned away then, deciding that he had enough adventure for one afternoon.

xoxoxox

"I saw her." Pluto did not need to ask who he meant when he walked through the door to see her awake. There was only one person today who could give her king a look that was both light and dark. He had seen a young queen.

"And? What did you do?"

His brow furrowed slightly as he took off his shoes and slipped his feet into a pair of slippers that were almost too small. "Nothing, what else could I do? Besides, she's not supposed to exist."

Tilting her head to one side, she set aside the piece of paper she had been reading. So far, two stewardesses and three passengers had no recollection of a Chiba Mamoru. "You sound as though you have a plan."

He nodded, crossing the floor to take his seat on a battered armchair across from her, looking very much like a rose in a rubbish heap. "We lay low, try to figure out what exactly happened, and when. Once you have regained your strength, we go back to when we're supposed to be and fix things."

Her king sounded so sure, so how he had sounded only days before disaster destroyed their world. Pluto knew that the odds were great that this would not end the way he wished. Time rarely ever made a mistake, and she knew they were brought to the here and now for a reason. Or a possibility. Still, this was her king, and she would do as he commanded, or die trying.

xoxoxox

The second time in one day, Endymion found himself out in the world. This time it was for food, an unfortunate necessary staple in life. Had he a choice, they would have lasted the rest of the day on the stale crackers found in the cupboards, but neither of their stomachs agreed with his utilitarian decision.

"Setsuna!"

Endymion knew they shouldn't have gone to the store that day. They could have lived another night on stale crackers. "Pretend you're not you," he hissed at her, hurrying them both along and trying to reach the safety of their shelter just a few blocks away.

Haruka was fast, though, and was on them in moments. "Hey, where you off to in such a... hurry..." He could feel Uranus' eyes on him, heavy and accusing. "I thought you were in America."

His eyes coldly met hers, and he could see the recognition in hers.

"King-"

"There's nothing to be king of anymore, Uranus."

Michiru approached slowly, catching their conversation. "I thought that they couldn't exist in the same time for very long, that their crystals made it impossible." She turned her head toward him, and he focused on her, missing the widening of Haruka's eyes. "It is why you were unable to visit your daughter."

_Daughter._He fought back the ache the word caused and gave her a curt nod.

Setsuna answered before he could. "There was a temporal delay. I managed to get the king here safely. This was the only place where we could go. Mamoru never made it to his destination."

The gasp behind him, along with Haruka's shocked expression, let Endymion know that the one person he would rather not know about his being here had heard enough.

"Kitten," Haruka said in a whisper, moving toward her princess. Michiru placed a restraining hand on the other woman's elbow.

Endymion turned to see her standing there, the replacement, the fluke, the one that should not be. And yet, her eyes were as wide as he remembered, just before she cried. Not the loud wails of crocodile tears that would quickly dry, but his own slow fall into perdition as he could only stand by and watch this unbearable pain in her escape the only way it could. It was rare, it hurt just as sharply each time, and like now, it was usually the result of him.

"Sere-" Too late, he cut off his voice as the last vestige of hope shattered in her.

A sharp hitch was his only warning at what came. There was no loud wail, no exuberant display to tell people that she was crying. Instead, it was as though she could not breathe, stuck between an inhale and a scream. Her tears came as though they had always been, and Endymion felt jealous of her ability to mourn so openly. She doubled over, clutching around her middle as she pitched forward. Instinctively, Endymion was there, catching her before she fell.

Then his axis shifted so sharply that he nearly lost his footing. She was not the anomaly, something that should not be. It was he who was the erroneous entity in this universe. She pushed at him even as she tugged him closer, and the feel of her so very alive in his arms broke all resolve he had. She was his Usako, but she was not his. She belonged to a man who was already dead. As he held this young girl, breathily sobbing a dead man's name over and over, his mind firmly set on one goal. He would do anything to fix her world, to make it better. While he was not her Mamoru, he was still hers.

He turned sharply to Pluto. "Forget our previous plans, we're fixing this. I don't care what we have to do." He would stay, here, to help her. No matter the cost.

Endymion expected an argument from the senshi of time, but she merely nodded, grim determination in her eyes.

xoxoxox

Haruka did not like where this was going one bit. That her princess' prince was no longer alive was bad enough, but to be forced to endure looking at someone who was but was not him must be excruciating for the young girl. She knew without a doubt that if she were in the same situation, if something were to happen to Michiru and she stumbled across this...this...doppelganger, there was no way she could keep hold of her sanity. How Usagi was supposed to move on from something this cruel was beyond her.

"And just _what,_ your _majesty,_ do you intend to do?" She demanded, fist balled tight. "There's nothing you can do here to just magically make things better. Your being here is just messing everything up even worse!"

He had no answer, just idly stroked _her_ princess in soothing circles against her arm. The sight of his hands on Usagi infuriated Haruka, and she wished to call forth all the powers of her planet to blast this man away from her.

"There is currently no course of action that is evident," Setsuna intoned, avoiding the scene behind her. "However-"

"Hold just a moment, Setsuna. Just why are you so casual about this?" Never had she wished to take back a demand for an explanation before. After Setsuna – no, Pluto – finished her tale of what had happened in a lost future, she wished for the ignorance of a few seconds ago.

She wanted to lash out at the both of them, especially this man who was supposed to be a king, to watch his passive face, which had not changed once during Pluto's recount, show some sort of emotion. "And what did you do while your wife and child died? Saved your own sorry ass?" It was petulant, it was stupid, and she did not need to look to know that Michiru was leveling a disapproving glare her way. Even the flare of emotion in Endymion's face was a hollow victory, leaving a bitter taste in her mouth. She was just so mad that she could do nothing about this, and he was by far the easiest of targets.

Michiru bumped her shoulder as she passed, a calm sea in this chaotic storm. Closing her eyes, Haruka turned to the side, struggling to still her tongue before she said anything else she would later regret.

"You know Haruka is volatile when angry," she heard her companion speak to the king in a soft, soothing tone. "We both know that you would do no such thing."

It was not Endymion who responded, but Pluto. "I believe we should gather later to decide what we are going to do."

"We could take Usagi with us. Our place is not too far from here. Haruka." She knew that tone, when used on her. Haruka knew she would get an earful later. But she also knew what Michiru wanted.

Avoiding all eyes except for the still crying girl, Haruka bent down and gently pried those tiny fingers from Endymion's shirt. "Come on, Kitten. Let's get you home."

Usagi was unresponsive, neither resisting or aiding Haruka in her attempts. She simply stared ahead with unseeing eyes, mumbling to herself. After a moment of struggle, Haruka managed to hoist the girl up. It was more awkward this way, and piggy back would have been more practical, but holding the young girl as an adult would a tired child, she almost felt like a decent human being instead of the insensitive ass she had been. Without waiting, she headed for the apartment, leaving the farewells and apologies to Michiru.

"I'm sorry," she said as her girlfriend caught up to them.

"I know." That was it. No yelling, no fights. She knew one would likely come later, but to lose that, to lose this, would be to lose herself. Her arms tightened on the catatonic girl.

"What do we do, when she's...herself again?" Michiru was the one better suited for emotional stuff. Haruka merely beat the crap out of whatever upset someone she cared about.

"We do as we normally do. We be there for her."

The rest of the trip was made in silence. Haruka honestly did not know how she would handle the situation when Usagi woke up. How could she just be _there,_ doing _nothing,_ when she knew how much pain the young girl was going through? And how would she handle the false cheer that the stupid considerate girl would likely try to pull off?

Michuru unlocked their door, and Haruka deposited the sleeping girl onto the couch.

"I'm going to go pick up dinner." Oh yeah. Before, they had ordered food, prepared to treat an energetic Usagi to a good meal. Now, it seemed as though comfort food was on the menu.

"Pick up something sweet for her, okay? And make sure they remembered her extra order of rice." Tugging a blanket from the hall closet, she draped it over her kitten. She felt a very familiar pair of lips press softly against her cheek. Confused, but not exactly one to complain about something like that, she looked up at Michiru. "What was that for?"

She was rewarded with a blinding smile. "Nothing. I'll be back soon."

xoxoxox

Usagi woke on a familiar couch. She somehow managed to end up in Haruka and Michiru's apartment, a cold compress on her forehead.

"You're finally up, Kitten." Haruka sat perched against the arm of a chair, arms folded as she regarded the young princess with careful calculation. "How do you feel?"

Sitting up took a feat of strength. Her head felt fuzzy and heavy and icky, and all she wanted to do was curl back in a ball and sleep the day away. Her chest ached, too, but the reason why eluded her. "I...what am I doing here?"

The tall woman arched an eyebrow. "What all do you remember?"

"I was coming to meet you guys," she started, then paused as she struggled to remember the rest. "And...I woke up here." The ache in her chest intensified, and she knew there was something she could was not remembering. Something important, but it had faded like the vestiges of a night mare. Tears streaked down her cheeks, tickling her skin with new wetness. "Why am I crying? I'm fine, I..."

Haruka jerked to action, leaving her perch to sit beside Usagi. A strong yet feminine hand made wide circled on her back. "You're fine, you...fainted. Michiru thinks its from low blood sugar. We brought you here because it was the closest place. It's gonna be just fine, I promise."

Usagi burrowed against Haruka's shoulder, who tensed in response but did not pull away. Her heart was breaking, and she did not know why. "Can I stay here? Just for a little bit?"

Giving in to the inevitable, Haruka accepted her role as a comforter. "Of course, you idiot. We're still having dinner. Because of your blood sugar. Don't want to send you out only to have you faint again, now do we?"

Usagi was so confused with what she was feeling and not remembering, and the comforting warmth of her friend, that she did not notice the uncharacteristic rambling.

_**End Chapter Three**_


	4. Ephemeral Memory

**Rating:** PG-13

**Disclaimers:** I don't own them. I do not claim to know much about Japan or its culture. I was ten when we moved back to the states. Instead of believing that I am an inept monkey pounding on a keyboard, please take any and all inaccuracies as creative license.

**Summary:** In the attempt to save the royal family from temporal disaster, Pluto succeeds in saving only one. The only time they can go is a time where neither exist, a young girl hurts, and the ability to fix things is still within reach.

**Author's Notes: **We have reached the beginning of the part I worried over. However, after much discussion with a friend, I am now filled with confidence! And I would like to remind everyone: This is an anime where Pegasus enters dreams, bad guys defy gravity and float, and no one can tell that Usagi is Sailor Moon. So really, believability is all relative! -cough-

Also, I have school during the week along with schoolwork. Updates may be sporadic.

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><p><em><strong>Chapter Four <strong>_- _Ephemeral Memory_

Her king had not been in a good mood when she dropped him off. Then again, a good mood for him was a relative term these days. She worried, not just for what he could or would do in his grief, but also for the strange feeling coming from him. It was miniscule, but even some blocks away she felt something within him slowly decay.

Pluto was, for all intents and purposes, trying her best to find out what happened and why. Before, it was difficult as she would not risk facing someone from their past and ruining things even further. However, now it was too late, and she may as well enlist the help of the other outer senshi.

The good thing, as well as the bad in many cases, about being the guardian of time was her inability to forget. She had a wealth of knowledge stored in her mind, all ready to be called forth at a moment's notice. So finding where they lived took very little remembering. With a careful knock on their door, she waited until the door opened and she was greeted by the gentle waves of Neptune's wavy hair and kind eyes.

"May we talk?" She asked.

Neptune glanced behind her for a moment. "Haruka, I'm going into the hall. Don't let Usagi eat herself to death on the buns." Then she stepped into the hall, closing the door quietly behind her. "She doesn't remember."

Pluto blinked. "How do you mean?"

Lines creased between the younger woman's eyebrows as an unfamiliar scowl settled over her features. "She awoke while I was out getting the food. Haruka told her she merely fainted, and that's why she's here."

Feeling her heart sing to her toes, Pluto leaned against the wall for support. "Didn't she realize how hard it would be to tell her the truth later on?"

"Do we have to?" The shorter woman's eyes traced the patterns stitched in the threadbare carpet. "You saw how she reacted. She may not be _your_ Usagi, but you can't tell me it wouldn't break your heart to have to witness that again."

"She is _always_ my lady, no matter the time," Pluto stated, caught in an unusual paradox of desperately missing her monarch and the young princess, and vehement on protecting the future queen of today. "And what if she were to remember on her own? What then? It would be better for us to tell her. The betrayal she would feel at discovering that we _knew_ would only exasperate her emotional trauma."

"If there is nothing to be done, I promise I will tell her myself. But isn't there something you can do?"

Pluto sighed. "Take me to her."

xoxoxox

Usagi was not going to complain at the mountain of food before her. She was not going to wonder at the worried glances her friends sent her way. Instead, she was going to ignore the unusual heaviness beneath her ribcage and eat until she couldn't move.

Haruka was just sitting there, staring with an unidentifiable expression, her own plate having been barely picked through. Worrying her lip, Usagi studies the two remaining sweet buns in front of her. She could do this. After all, it was just one.

"Hey, Haruka," the taller girl jumped to alert at the sound of her name, instantly leveling piercing eyes on Usagi. The diminutive girl gulped, but still held out the bun. "Did you want one?"

Relaxing, Uranus gave a soft smile. "No, Kitten. We bought them for you."

Enthusiastically, Usagi bit into the bun that was hers and hers alone. What ever she did to deserve such wonderful friends, she hoped she doing it.

The front door opened, and both turned to see Michiru enter with someone who made Usagi's eyes widen in pleasant surprise. "Setsuna!" Eyeballing the now truly last bun, she sighed. Picking it up, she held it out. "Did you want one?"

Setsuna faltered for a moment, her mouth working around something. Then she cleared her throat and smiled warmly. "Thank you, but no. How have you been?"

"Apparently I should stop missing breakfast and forgetting my lunch at home! Did you know I fainted?" She still could not believe it. This was not the first time that she had not eaten in a good long while, but the first where it caused her to black out.

"I was just informed. Perhaps you should start carrying an emergency candy bar."

Usagi drooped, fiddling with her remaining bun. "I can't. I'd eat it when it wasn't an emergency."

There was a small strangled sound, but before the girl could wonder where it came from, she was wrapped tightly in a pair of strong arms. Not that she minded, because hugs were awesome, but Setsuna rarely displayed physical displays of affection. Suddenly drowsy, she leaned into the embrace as her eyes drifted half shut. She was aware of nothing and everything, and her mind kept drifting back, as always, to Mamoru.

Setsuna finally pulled away with a weak smile and tired eyes before turning away. Usagi shook herself, wondering at the lethargic feeling that seeped through her skin and down to the bones.

"Hey, Kitten. If you like, we can call your mom and let her know you're gonna stay the night."

Usagi mumbled reply was so incoherent that she wasn't even sure what she meant as she slumped down to rest her head in the crook of her elbows.

xoxoxox

In a place where dreams found sanctuary, a young man stood at the cusp of the forest. He closed his eyes and tilted his face to the winds, trying to find the familiar pull he had become so accustomed to in so short a time. It was not there, had not been there for far too many weeks, and his heart felt adrift, buffeted around in the howling gales of a tsunami.

Widening his senses, he strained for the familiarity of others, but those to eluded his grasp. Straining now, desperate to never be alone again, he stretched his abilities even further. Silence greeted him until the last, when a tiny glimmer of recognition filtered through.

It was his king, the man to whom Helios owed his existence. For, without the guardian of the earth, he would have had no purpose, and would have ceased to exist long ago. Something was not right, though. The connection, which should have been immediate, was weak and unstable, breaking in and out. Desperate, he strained against the boundaries of dreams.

_Please, my lord, _he silently begged, _please show me your dreams._

Within minutes he forcibly broke the connection, tears in his eyes as he implored with the crystal that what he saw was not true.

His maiden could not be gone.

xoxoxox

"What did you do to her?" Haruka demanded as they entered the bedroom. "One minute she's fine, and the next she can't keep her eyes open."

"I checked the flow of times around her. It is not something I can do often. Perhaps not again, not without irreversible consequences." Pluto leaned heavily against the wall. The door was closed, and Usagi slept deeply in the other room, yet still their voices were barely above a whisper. "I have seen many possibilities, and none of them end well,"

"Are we going to tell her, then? Is _that_ the best course of action to take?" Haruka refused to believe it, even if Setsuna decided it was the right option.

Fortunately for the angry woman's sanity, the senshi of time gave a slow and grim shake of her head. "Not once did I encounter her remembering on her own, yet I have seen her rediscover the truth countless times. In some, it is another chance meeting in the street. In others, she overhears you and Neptune arguing through a door. Still others she just happens to stumble across the truth, or one of us tells her what happened. In all of these, it takes her too long to recover from the shock. And in many cases, the betrayal of our silence."

"So we _do_ tell her, then." Michiru's soft voice hesitated on her words, and Haruka knew that her girlfriend would place it on her own shoulders to tell their princess what neither wanted. Just so that Haruka would not have to.

"There were some strands that were not clear to me. There is something poised to happen, and I believe we must wait for it to occur before we decide what we are to do." Pluto took a step away from the wall, swaying slightly before forcing her spine straight. "Until then, perhaps you could tell me what had happened to Chiba Mamoru."

"How should we know? We haven't seen him since before he and Kitten left for the airport." Haruka grumbled. She had wanted to follow, to make sure that Chiba behaved his male urges, but Michiru had stopped her at the door. _Let them have this time._

"What is it that is going on now? I can feel the disturbance, yet I do not know anything of this enemy." Shaking her head slightly, Setsuna took a step forward, her strength returning. "Whatever this is is not something that has happened before."

"We're not exactly sure what the enemy is after. All we know is that for some reason they are after people's star seeds."

Pluto's eyes widened, horror and shock both on her face. "Star seeds? I know of no one with the ability to harvest those."

xoxoxox

The soft light of the crescent moon gave the room an eery glow as shadows danced along the wall. Leaves and twigs sprawled toward the harsh contours of the iron fence, giving the patterns a crisscross of both modern and post modern art. Endymion, though his eyes were trained on a shadow that looked like a mutilated rabbit, saw none of this.

Haruka's words echoed in his skull. Now, after some time had passed, he wondered if he had truly done all that he could, or if he had allowed his own fear at death to override the need to save his family.

He wanted to say no, knew that was the answer. He had faced death more times than he could remember, and each time held the steely determination to die for first Serenity, then Small Lady. Still, there was now that seed of doubt that planted itself firmly in his mind. The more he thought about it, the more that doubt grew.

A bright light pierced the wall. On alert, he reached for the only weapon he had on hand. The lamp was bulky and ineffective, but it was all he could reach. Endymion lowered it as he saw who emerged, head tilting to one side as he spoke the visitor's name. They had never met, but there was no mistaking who the boy was, especially since he held the golden crystal.

"The crystal has heard your plea, Lord Endymion." Helios glided across the floor to stand at the foot of the bed, his ethereal glow warring with the beams of moonlight. "I regret it took this long for us to hear you. You are not who you should be."

Endymion set the lamp back where it had been. "Which plea would that be? I have had many lately."

"Your desire to fix things here and now is the one that speaks the loudest, my lord. It is also the only one that the crystal can assist with." The ageless boy appeared young and lost as his head lowered to one side. "It cannot fix a future that will never happen."

His fists gripped the thin sheet on the mattress as Endymion lowered his head. "So it is impossible, then. To get them back."

There was a pause before Helios answered, then his words were slow and steady, thought out and collected. "On this path, your time can never be exactly as it was."

"The other path, though." To go back to the moment when things changed, when Mamoru died. "That could fix things."

Helios' face grew desperate as he struggled for an answer. "I-I don't-I can't-I am not very learned of the intricate entanglement of time."

Endymion sighed as his shoulders slumped. "You can help with the here and now though, right? Why? You usually do not interfere with the waking world." Unless, of course, it involved a certain girl. A moment later, Helios confirmed the king's suspicions.

"I am afraid to admit it is not just for you I am doing this for. I wish to see my maiden once more," he admitted. "I can no longer hear her call, feel her dreams, here or in the future. It is lonely."

"It is," he agreed, voice course. Clearing his throat, he straightened his shirt. "So, will the crystal help me protect Usagi?"

"I believe so. It is calling for action, and knows more than I. However, I do not believe that we have much time for you decide whether or not to go through with this." The boy shifted as urgency filtered through his movements. "You must decide _now,_ Lord Endymion. The longer we wait, the more your connection to the crystal fades."

"How can the connection be fading?"

"I do not know. Perhaps it is that you do not belong here, and the crystal senses this." Even as he spoke, Endymion knew Helios was right. The link that he had been able to feel with the crystal for many years was not as strong as it had been in the future.

"What is it exactly the crystal will do to me?" He had already made up his mind, despite his question. He could not stand to see Usagi, in any form, in so much pain. And to follow his original plan would mean destroying her, and this time. Pluto was right, they had been sent to the here and now for a reason. If not, then it was too late to turn away anyway.

"That is for the crystal to decide." Helios lifted the crystal between them as his voice grew heavy with sorrow and guilt. "I am sorry, Lord Endymion."

"What for?"

"This is going to hurt," he replied, moments after Endymion grasped the golden crystal. "A lot."

The effects were immediate. Molten heat seared up his arm, striking every nerve, cell, lodging deep into the marrow of his bones, spreading quickly and without mercy throughout his body. He would have screamed had his lungs not seized up from the terrible constriction in his chest, blocking the flow of air and blood through the rest of his body.

xoxoxox

Night had fallen while she had spoken with the other two outer senshi. The moon hung high in the sky, a small sliver of what it was shining down. While she had no irrefutable proof, Pluto now had an idea as to what had happened to Mamoru. As the earth's protector, she knew he would have the earth's star seed. It would be logical to assume that whatever enemy they faced would go for the strongest first.

Arriving at Setsuna's house, she navigated through the gate and the small yard to the shack. She wondered if Endymion was sleeping, and hoped he had pleasant dreams.

However, when she opened the door, she heard a shout from the bedroom followed by the sound of a body falling to the ground.

Panic fueled her speed as she raced across the small room, not stopping until she reached the bedroom only to find Endymion was on the floor, a tangled heap of clothing and blankets. He was not moving, but she could hear the ragged breathing fill the musty air.

"My lord?" The pile moved as Endymion struggled to get up, cloth rustling with the force of his quaking limbs. "Do you require assistance?"

"No," he grunted through clenched teeth, voice high with strain of his efforts. Pluto stood back, trying not to allow her concern outweigh her king's pride.

Finally, somehow, he managed to straighten into a kneeling position. Pluto gasped at the sight of him, unable to speak as he stood. He clutched loose pants around his waist as his dress shirt swallowed his slight frame. He started when he looked at her, no longer having to glance down. Instead his chin had to tilt a fraction of an inch to meet her eyes.

Her king, several centuries old, was now trapped in a body caught between adolescence and adulthood.

"So this is what Helios meant," he said in a voice half an octave higher than normal. Though she knew _who_ he was, it was only because she knew that was who he was supposed to be. With the height difference, softer face, and the change in his voice, it would be near impossible for anyone to guess exactly who he was.

_**-End Chapter Four**_


	5. Growing Pains

**Rating:** PG-13

**Disclaimers:** I don't own them. I do not claim to know much about Japan or its culture. I was ten when we moved back to the states. Instead of believing that I am an inept monkey pounding on a keyboard, please take any and all inaccuracies as creative license.

**Summary:** In the attempt to save the royal family from temporal disaster, Pluto succeeds in saving only one. The only time they can go is a time where neither exist, a young girl hurts, and the ability to fix things is still within reach.

**Author's Notes: **I'd like to apologize. In many places, this chapter is more lighthearted than previous ones, and a part from that it just feels off. I have gone over it two or three times, and aside from some changes here and there, something else just doesn't seem _right__. _So I do apologize for that, and hopefully whatever it is will be fixed by the next chapter. (I have fixed it to make it somewhat better. Its still a bit off, but its not near as bad as it was.) Also, we have reached the end point of where I had most things actually written. (I changed a lot, though. Made things better, changed some things around.) While I know where this is going, and have a set end, it may or may not take awhile to get it out. Lastly, while I have avoided the use of honorifics, there are some nicknames where 'chan' seems to be an integral part.

And thanks to Antigone2, the person who I didn't name last chapter but will this time around. If it wasn't for her answering my endless questions, from names to just random questions, this part would likely not have been posted so swiftly. If fact, the story may have just sputtered here for several weeks.

_**Chapter Five – **__Growing Pains_

"Are you sure you'll be okay?" Haruka asked, not for the first time, as she peered at her over the rim of her sunglasses at Usagi. The young girl grabbed the leftovers from last night's dinner out of the front seat. Her Kitten had slept all through the night, not stirring until Michiru began her turn making breakfast.

The short girl gave a blinding smile. "Yes! I promised Mama I'd watch Chibi-Chibi today, and I was _actually_ supposed to be home an hour ago."

The front door opened to reveal an intimidating Tsukino Ikuko putting on her last earring. "Usagi! You're late!"

"Sorry, Mama! Michiru made breakfast, and it would've been rude to leave!" With a wave, Usagi raced up the sidewalk.

"Uh huh, sure. And I suppose you'll be wanting the breakfast I made as well." She smiled warmly at the car. "Thank you for taking care of my daughter!"

"But Mama, your food is so good!" That was the last Haruka heard as the front door closed.

Michiru slid from the back seat to the front, still graceful despite the awkward climb. "She will get suspicious if we keep spoiling her."

Haruka put the car in drive then left the cozy family home and toward their destination. "She rarely gets to come over. She may just think its because of that."

Before Usagi had woken up Pluto called, more reserved than usual, and requested that as soon as they were able they come by her house. Haruka made good time, only breaking a few speeding laws despite the urgency she felt. There was a change in the air, both she and Michiru could taste it. Reaching the house, they made their way to the back of the house as they had been instructed to do.

"Hey, Setsuna," Haruka called as they entered the dilapidated entry way. "What was it you wanted to see us about?"

"Please, come in," Pluto said, holding a tray in her hands. "I have prepared some tea. I apologize for the poor accommodations, however, I do not yet feel comfortable intruding on someone else's home."

Michiru took the lead and, donning a pair of slippers, entered the small living area. Endymion was no where to be seen, but the sounds of rustling came from the next room. Haruka took a seat beside Michiru and accepted the cup of tea she was offered.

"The strand we have been waiting for has occurred." Long delicate fingers closed around a small cup, steam billowing from its wide mouth. "As it stands, we do not need to tell the princess anything."

An intense wave of relief swept through Haruka as the tension she had been unaware of leaked from her body. "What happened?"

Instead of answering, Pluto turned toward the bedroom door. "Perhaps I am not the one who should be explaining." A short boy within the years of puberty emerged from the bedroom.

The boy adjusted the collar of his shirt as he took a seat beside Pluto. "Helios happened."

Haruka tensed, ready for answers from the stranger and not riddles. "I ask again, what happened? And who the hell are you?"

The boy sighed as he picked up his own cup, the fifth in the set sitting unused. "I had a visitor last night." As he explained about the boy who was the Pegasus, and the crystal, Haruka recognized the realization dawning on Michiru even as the answer eluded the taller woman. Finally, the boy set his cup down. "And I am Endymion. Or, rather, a young Chiba Mamoru, depending on your perspective."

Haruka stared at the young man. Until he mentioned it, she had not noticed the similar features or the how the hair would be be exactly the same if he brushed it just so. Now it was obvious, as were the same eyes of a haunted man she had seen the previous day.

"You've got to be kidding me."

xoxoxox

In a display rare for her, Usagi touched very little of her second breakfast. Truth was, what she ate at Haruka and Michiru's had settled heavy in her stomach. Her dreams had been so sad and heartbreaking that while she could not remember it all when she woke, she knew that it had something to do with her Mamo-chan and that made food taste like ash in her mouth.

Her mother and father had left not long after she got home, and Shingo was spending the weekend at a friend's for the weekend. So it was just Chibi-Chibi and herself, and the small child was busy at work creating a masterpiece out of crayons, paperclips, and glue. While she had a free moment, Usagi scribbled some lines on a piece of paper to collect her thoughts, hoping that _this _would be the letter to warrant a response.

"How does this sound, Chibi-Chibi? 'I had a bad dream about you last night, and it made me worry. Are you doing okay?'" Chewing on the tip of her pen, she swung her legs to lay back on the couch. The new angle gave no answer to whether or not she should keep the line in or not.

"Chibi." The puerile voice sounded closer than expected. Sticky fingers painted gluey nondescript patterns on Usagi's bare leg before slapping down on the carefully worded letter.

"Chibi-Chibi!" Jerking up, she tried to see if her hard work could be salvaged, her efforts only making the mess worse. Exhaling slowly, she leaned her head back against the fluffy pillows of the couch. "You're right. It sounded like I was demanding answers. He's probably very busy right now, so I should just let him know I am fine." Which she was, mostly. "And that I love him." Which she did, desperately.

"Chibi!" Messy little hands reached up for Usagi as the small child silently asked for attention.

Figuring she was now due for another shower, Usagi lifted the light girl off the ground and cuddled the attention seeker close. "What do you think? Want to get washed up and go out for a little bit?"

It would do her some good to get out of the house and into the open where she could think, or not think, as the exuberance of someone so young kept her occupied.

There were times, like now, when the young child in her arms made her miss Chibi-Usa. Even the pink haired girl's never ending supply of insults would be music to Usagi's ears. She briefly wondered how the girl was doing, _what_ she was doing, and if any of the future royal family gave her half as much thought as she did them.

"Chibi!" Eagerness for outside adventure shown bright on Chibi-Chibi's round face. The effect was nearly contagious as Usagi found herself smiling in return.

"Go get your clothes," she told the young girl, knowing that she would have to follow not too far behind to make sure essential undergarments were chosen as well.

Before that, though, she pulled out a crisp piece of paper and dated it at the top._ "My dear Mamo-chan,' _she started, her words large and blocky. _'I am doing well, and I love you.'_

The important part of the message written, with first a half-lie and then the truth, she set the paper down on the coffee table. She could finish it when she got home and have it ready for the next day's post. Along with the letter she would write just before school started.

"Come on, Chibi-Chibi! Lets go get you cleaned up."

xoxoxox

There were times in his life when he wished to have attention away from him. Girls in school, before and after he had found Usako, was a prime example of this desire. He was never one to bask in the attention of others. It was, in part, why he'd had no qualms with his wife being the figurehead for their people. It was why he would vanish so suddenly after throwing a rose and a line or two that would be forgotten the next day.

Having three intimidating female figures scrutinizing his every move in the cramped confines of a bathroom was not how he would describe his idea of a good time.

"I must admit. I never expected you were ever so..." Neptune trailed off as she stood behind the king, looking down at his reflection.

"Tiny? Pluto, isn't this a bit overboard?" Uranus hovered in the doorway, looking at none of them while her arms folded in front of her.

"I was going to say diminutive."

"And that's supposed to be less insulting?"

The face in the cracked bathroom mirror revealed _him_ as he remembered being at the age of sixteen, just before his last major growth spurt struck. "I'm neither short nor diminutive. I happen to be about an average height. Well, more average than you two." Pluto and Uranus, both tall for men let alone women, pierced him with a glare.

"I say you look more adorable," Neptune rest her hands on his shoulder, chin pressing against his temple. "And people will never suspect a sixteen year old boy to be a king who has ruled for over a thousand years."

"Or a dead man who's supposed to be in America."

Neptune turned to Uranus, and then walked toward her. Endymion watched their reflection. The hushed voices, the softening in Uranus' eye, the overall intimacy of the scene made him feel as though he were an unwelcome intruder and sent a sharp pang of jealousy through his chest.

"As you know, there may be unforeseen consequences of this, my lord." Pluto spoke from beside him, haggard and spent, having spent the majority of the previous night going over his recount of what happened and trying to see the possible outcomes.

"I know. But this may be the only way to help her." Looking at his body, though, he wondered just what use he could be like this. He had almost forgotten how scrawny he had been before the growth spurts. "Somehow."

"I am aware of the lengths you would go for your wife. But you do realize she is not, right? Not yet, not here." She took a step forward, bringing a gloved hand up to trace his youthful reflection. "You may not even survive this."

"No matter the point in time, or what happened to change things, _Usagi_ is the girl I fell in love with. She will become the queen she was meant to be, and I will make sure I am there for her when she is. Even if it is not as me."

"You don't mean to take his place?"

Endymion furrowed his brows, turning up to meet her shocked expression. "Of course I don't. Usagi fell in love with _Mamoru._ I am no longer him. It's _he_ that she needs. I merely meant that I would find a way to bring _him_ back."

"You...promise you'll take care of yourself. You're all I have left."

"I know." His gaze intensified on her then as he leaned forward, intent that she heard what he said next. "Just as I know that you did everything that was in your power to do otherwise."

Pluto's eyes widened, and there was a crack, exhaustion making it possible for unwanted emotion to sneak through. "I-But I couldn't-"

"Go get some rest. I'll try to get accustomed to being...this."

The woman nodded and left the room as quick as she could.

He left the mirror, tightening the belt on the slacks. Pluto had gone out early to buy yet another set of clothing for him, and even the new outfit was just a hair too long and a tad too loose. He then left his small bedroom and returned to the living room, where Uranus and Neptune stood by the door.

"You know, King, you're going to need to learn to walk all over again. You look like you're not quite used to the size of your legs yet." Uranus leaned against the wall.

"What do you propose?"

xoxoxox

The arcade temporarily closed for a staff meeting, and without having any other place sound good to eat, Usagi walked down the sidewalk until time came when they could get lunch at her favorite spot. Chibi-Chibi played the ends of her long hair, which proved to be more effective than one of those leashes she had seen on some kids.

"Did you want to go there instead?" She pointed to a cafe across the street. The young child looked over, face scrunching up as she shook her head. Usagi giggled at the reaction. "So you want to wait until they reopen the arcade?"

"Arcade?"

"You're right, I prefer their milkshakes anyway." Her stomach was letting her know it was over the dream as it growled.

A sharp tug on her hair nearly had her falling as the young girl suddenly stopped moving. "Ow! What's wrong?"

Chibi-Chibi stared off in the direction of the park, her eyes wide. With an excited clap, she squealed as she dropped the strand of hair she'd been holding as she dashed through traffic and crowds.

A shriek escaped Usagi as she raced after the young girl, calling her name and barely dodging angry motorists.

xoxoxox

The smaller limbs, the different perspective on the world, being slightly less than a foot lower, made the trek through the park a more perilous adventure than it should have been. Curbs became his enemy, steps deceptive in their height, and if Uranus had not been there to grab onto his arm whenever he tripped, Endymion would have been one walking bruise within the first five minutes.

"This is utterly ridiculous," he growled, the sound so much higher in pitch than he was used to.

"Relax. You'll get used to it in a few days."

"Walking shouldn't be so hazardous. The difference a few inches makes, and how it affects one's center of balance is astounding." Another curb tried to kill him and once again a strong hand on his arm saved him from breaking his tail bone.

"Now you know why I hate heels."

They reached the path and safer ground, so he had nothing more to focus on aside from his own thoughts. "Do you think the crystal was right to do this?" It was something that had been bothering him since the pain faded. To be here, like this, did not offer much in the way of protecting Usagi. At least not physically. The only upside he could see was the possibility that the girl would not recognize them should they run into each other again. Another meeting like the one yesterday would shred the remainder of his sanity.

"There are so many things about this that's wrong." Uranus' tone was suddenly harsh, bitter, and Endymion fell silent under the obvious resentment. He was no fool. He knew that the tall senshi had always preferred the queen, always been loyal to her. It was only the fact that his wife had loved him as desperately as he still did her that his presence had been tolerated. "I _hate_ that I have to lie to her, and I _hate_ that telling her the truth would hurt her more than anything else."

Endymion shook his head as he shoved his small hands into his pockets. "So do I."

"You're not even him! You're not supposed to be here!" This time, her grip on his arm was not to steady, but to force him to a stop while she glared down at him. "What gives you the right to come here and mess everything up?"

Endymion clenched his fist down at his side. He remembered this time. Mamoru was supposed to be alive, in America, and trying to fight off the inevitable homesickness that came when he checked his mail. He was supposed to be spending stolen moments in class during lulls in the lecture to jot down a few lines on stationary she had bought him. Her letters should be getting him through the hours between classes, and he would settle for a couple nights of eating nothing but disgusting Americanized ramen and sandwiches just to hear her voice for an hour. That was how it was supposed to be. That's how it _was._

His chin thrust up, Endymion stepped as close as he dared, glaring up at her with all the anger he felt. "And what gave her the right to save just _me? _He died, and I should have followed, but instead of going with my family, I am stuck _here_." There was a tug on his arm, small and insignificant, but it was quickly shoved aside as everything he had tried not to feel came winding its way up and out.

Uranus opened her mouth to respond to his outburst. She clearly had not expected his thinly veiled admission. "You didn't want to be rescued."

"Not if it meant losing them." His throat ached, muscles shaking with the effort needed to keep from lashing out or breaking down. He was not sure which he would do. "_I was supposed to die with them! It's where I should have been!"_

He would have chosen lashing out, striking Uranus for just being there when Serenity was not, but when his fist pulled back he felt a tiny weight hold him down as a small whimper echoed in his ear. Jerking his eyes toward the source of the noise, he stopped at what he saw. For a brief moment, through the confusion of his mind, he saw someone he should not have. "Small Lady?" Then he blinked, and the picture cleared. While familiar, the small child was not his daughter.

"Chibi?" Her voice quivered in a way he knew very well. Memories of a scared little girl afraid of thunderstorms and the dark clouded his mind.

Kneeling down, he calmed his nerves as he tried to come across as a benign entity. "Did I scare you?" Her large eyes stared up at him with hurt as she nodded. "I'm sorry. Are you lost?"

Her tiny palm patted his cheek. "Chibi?"

"I'm feeling better now, thank you." He took her little hand, wrapping it loosely in his comparatively larger one. "What's your name?"

The child tilted her head down, shyly glancing up at him through long eyelashes as her frown was replaced by a tiny smile. "Chibi-Chibi." Then the girl brought her hands behind her back, lightly scraping one shoe on the trail.

Endymion was powerless to stop the small smile at the young girl. "Do you need help finding your family?"

Unexpectedly, the girl's eyes got as impossibly wide as her sudden grin. "Chibi!" The next thing he knew, she threw her arms around his neck and clung, snuggling against his shoulder. "Chibi."

Familiarity swept through him at the contact. Stunned, he stood holding the girl.

"Chibi-Chibi!" Both turned at the voice down the trail. Though he knew it would come eventually, Endymion was not quite prepared to meet her yet, not in this form. It was awkward and clumsy, and while those were good covers for his normally measured strides, it just was not something he wished others to see.

"Kitten!" Uranus' voice was affectionate as she called to her, lifting a hand in greeting. "Didn't I just drop you off?"

"Haruka!" Usagi reached them, panting as she slowed. Leaning against the taller girl, her face glowed when she saw the young child in Endymion's arms. "Oh, you found her! Thank goodness, I've been looking everywhere!" She reached for the girl, who shook her head and tried to hide in his neck. With a sigh, Usagi's shoulders dropped as she tilted her head back, eyes closing. "I'm sorry, I hope she's not bothering you."

"No, she's fine." Tiny fingers played with the ends of his hair, sharp tugs followed soon by awkward pats. Truth was, she acted as an anchor while the rest of him threatened to disperse. It felt wrong to be talking to Usagi like this, acting as though he did not know everything about her.

"Well, thank you again for finding her. My name's Tsukino Usagi." Her eyes, unlike the last time he saw them, were happy and curious. Alive.

This was something they had not prepared for, something so obvious that he had not put any thought into. What name could he give her? What sort of moniker did he want to go by until this farce could end?

He wanted to tell her the truth the best he could, to minimize the lies, but to do so could trigger something and that was not something he wanted to do. "Shinji." He would not lie to her, ever, beyond what was necessary to keep her from remembering. That, he decided, was the least he could do. "Shinji Minori."

"Its very nice to meet you." Her smile was almost blinding, and Endymion was mesmerized.

"Likewise." There probably should have been something else to add. Perhaps some way to politely extend the conversation, but his tongue decided all of a sudden to tie itself in knots. The last time he had seen Usagi, she had been crying, heartbroken, silently begging him to make everything better. Now here she was, almost happy.

"Forgive him, he's a bit shy."

"Oh! Haruka, do you know two know each other?"

Uranus' answer came almost too easily. "Of course. He's my uncle's kid on my mother's side." When Usagi blinked, the taller woman continued. "He, my uncle, married my mother's sister. Then they divorced before he was born. He's from my uncle's second marriage." According to Uranus, he was not related to her at _all,_ actually, except through divorce and coincidence.

"Oh. That makes sense." Usagi then looked back at him, catching him off guard once more. "Did you just move here with your family?"

Endymion shook his head. "Just me now."

Her eyes widened, and he could have kicked himself. "Oh, I'm sorry!"

"Happened a long time ago." His shoulder rose in a stiff shrug. "Barely remember."

Her head tilted to one side, in the way he knew she did when trying to figure out a puzzling situation. "You look familiar. Do I know you from some where?"

Perhaps not so fortunate. "No! I assure you, aside from being a distant cousin to Haruka, I am in no way related to anyone you know!" His silent promise was already broken within the first two minutes. To get the conversation away from him, he turned to the young girl in his arms who had up to that point been looking on with curious confusion. "So, who is this cute little girl here?"

"She's Chibi-Chibi. She's my...baby...sister?"

"Chibi-Chibi?" Knowing she was once again the center of attention, the little girl giggled and again patted Endymion on the cheek. "Well, she certainly does look like you." With a gentle finger, he traced one of the heart-shaped buns in the girl's dark pink hair. Chibi-Chibi's smile was shy, and once again he was helpless to return with a small grin of his own, knowing Usagi never had a sister. Still, looking at this young girl, he could not get a sense that there was anything wrong with her.

"Yes," Usagi's voice trailed off, an odd sound in her voice causing him to turn his gaze on her. She was staring at him, trying to figure out something that she was missing, a recognizable link. Then she blinked and shook her head with a laugh. "Anyway, we need to get going. Come on, Chibi-Chibi. Its time for lunch!"

Endymion set the reluctant girl on the ground. He gave her a wave, which she returned before bouncing over to Usagi and grabbing her hand. "It was very good to meet you! Hopefully I'll see you again soon!"

"You will be. He's going to your school once he gets settled in."

"Oh, you are?"

"I am?"

"Yes. And he's staying at Setsuna's for the moment."

"Oh good!" Usagi waved and smiled. "I'll see you both again soon, then!"

Then she was leaving, and the sight of her walking away sent a panic through Endymion and he took a step to follow. "Wait!"

Uranus' hand was on his arm again, and Usagi was too far away to hear him. "Let her go, King." Her voice was firm, but not unkind. Then her hand whacked him upside the head. "What were you thinking? Shinji Minori? Really? Are you the king of redundancy now?"

"I panicked! I didn't think I'd meet her so suddenly!" The full brunt of his previous encounter returned to him, and without Usagi there to muddle his senses, he buried his face in his hands. "I can't believe this. And what about you? Was that seriously the best you could come up with?"

Uranus just rolled her eyes. "Come on, _Minori__._ Time to go figure out the rest of our ill conceived cover story."

xoxoxox

Carrying Chibi-Chibi, Usagi kept glancing back in the direction she had come from. Her dream circled in her mind, bouncing off the newcomer's name. Chibi-Usa's face floated through her mind as it had been then, ever shifting, as her final words echoed within Usagi's psyche. _Keep the truthful child safe._

Was there a connection between the dream and this strange boy? He seemed so cold and distant, not exactly the shy boy Haruka insisted he was. There was not anything about him that screamed out he needed to be kept safe from anything.

Yet, that did not explain that look she had seen in his eyes. She had seen the same look on Mamo-chan and Mako-chan. She had seen it on Motoki when Reika was studying in Africa, and now on her own face when she was no longer pretending in front of the mirror. It was a look of loss and loneliness.

As Chibi-Chibi tugged on her cheeks, Usagi decided that the odds of there being a connection were slim to none. "Okay, okay, we'll get some lunch, I promise."

That did not mean, of course, that she would not do what she could to chase that look away. Perhaps, if she could do it for him, she could do it for herself as well.

_**-End Chapter Five**_

_**AN:**__ Shinji Minori. Each name pretty much means 'truth.' And now you know where Truthful Child comes from. Muahaha. See? Told you I had this planned since the beginning. Also, I am running out of melancholy songs to add to my writing playlist. If any of you has a good song recommendation, please let me know! I am desperate to add to the mood. It can be lyrically sad, or the music itself sad. Heck, one song I have is Johnny Cash's rendition of Hurt, and its more because of the sad slow pace._


	6. Insomnia

**Rated:** PG-13

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Sailor Moon. If I did, it never would have gotten published, as I never would have sat down to plot it out, and all the characters would have been stick figures on napkins. Be thankful I don't own it.

**Summary:** In the attempt to save the royal family from temporal disaster, Pluto succeeds in saving only one. The only time they can go is a time where neither exist, a young girl hurts, and the ability to fix things is still within reach.

**A/N: **I figured out what was wrong with the last chapter, thanks to AM. (I honestly think that's why my brain was balking at the chapter. I probably should have saved that bit for this chapter, but ah well!) Thank you to everyone who suggested songs! I have most of them now, and while there are one or two that don't quite fit my mood, I know they'll come in handy in future writing endeavors. If anyone can think of any more sad or melancholy or depressing songs, I'm more than happy to listen! Also, I have bits and pieces of the story up to chapter ten outlined. Now all I got to do is write and fill in the blanks!

(I also realized, while writing this chapter, that I must be a Michiru/Haruka shipper as well.)

While I have you here, is there anything you want me to explain in the story? It can be anything, from a plot point you don't get to a scene involving certain characters in a certain scenario. I can't promise that I'd be able to get them worked in, but the ideas may spark other ideas.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Chapter Six - <strong>Insomnia_

The thing about post traumatic stress that many people could not understand, especially in aggravated cases, was that it lasted a life time. For some, it could be triggered by something as innocuous as the sound and feel of fireworks. For others, the clean scent of a specific brand of detergent could drag memories of a rather forgettable childhood kicking and screaming from the subconscious. For Endymion, there were no triggers in the waking world. It was when he dreamed, when he could not escape himself, that events of the past came back to haunt him.

For many years, he dreaded the nights. He would study or clean until exhaustion finally claimed him. Ephemeral images of memories forgotten would play themselves out in such horrific ways that he would wake up with a cry on his tongue, only to have no recollection of what had his heart racing and his legs feeling as though they had been hollowed out by a dull instrument. Memories of a past life would play out in his dream scape, twisted to such ways that he could not remember if a princess had been killed or had stabbed herself with his own sword. Then there were the memories of battles, and deaths and rebirths.

Now his dreams had more fodder, and this time there was no soothing hand or mumbled words at his side, talking him down from night terrors and lulling him, finally, into a dreamless slumber. This time, it was them he dreamed about. It was her eyes as their daughter disappeared that haunted him, and there was no one now to soothe away the nightmares.

After waking up for the second time that night, having slept a total of three hours, he recognized that sleep would not come again. On silent feet he crept to the kitchen, careful not to disturb Pluto. After the first night he insisted on taking the couch, as to do otherwise brushed against his deep rooted manners. It made these nightly excursions easier with the door shut firm between them.

Settling on the floor, he went to work on scrubbing the dingy kitchen tiles. There was more he wanted to do, but he had yet to broach the subject of repairing the shack with her. It would keep him occupied outside of school, which he still cursed Uranus for forcing that one on him, and would likely drive him to exhausted sleep.

"You don't have to do this." The sudden voice caused Endymion to jump. His senses were not as sharp as they should be if Pluto could sneak up on him.

"The work keeps me busy." A few seconds of silent scrubbing stretched out, closing around him in a suffocating stillness. Desperate to escape this feeling, he blurted out the first question that came to mind. "How did this place come to be on the property, anyway?"

"I asked the realtor the exact same question."

"Oh? She tell you anything about it?"

"A man lived in the main house along with his wife and four children. The house, while spacious, barely had room enough for all those people." Pluto knelt beside him and dipped her hand in the water bucket. Pulling out a sponge she scrubbed along the floor, scouring the stains that refused to move. "One day, the man's brother came to the house. The brothers had been estranged for many years, as the man had gone in favor of family while the brother chose a career. Now, the brother was married, but had no children."

"How does this get to the house?"

"Well, the brother's business went under. He was in debt, and had many collectors after him. He could pay them off, but he could not afford to keep his home. So he went to the man, who felt torn. He barely had room in his house for his wife and children, yet he could not turn away his own brother. So together, they built this place so that the young couple could have a place to stay."

This time, the silence did not seem to close around him. There was an almost sense of peace as he scrubbed and cleaned, with Pluto doing the same beside him.

xoxoxox

She was running late. This was not a rare occurrence for Usagi, but it was usually due to a missed alarm. This time, she had actually gotten up with the annoying buzzer, ate a calm breakfast, and set out about her day. There was a detour along her way to school, though, and the reason why she had made sure to wake up a little early.

As she slipped the envelopes into the mailbox, she had allowed a moment of melancholy to sweep through her. Last night's dreams were still as hazy as the previous dreams, but she still sensed that they had something to do with Mamo-chan.

Her ring glinted in the early morning sun, the sparkle catching her eye as she looked down. Twisting it, she wondered if he had anything that constantly reminded him of her. Would he ever look at a park bench and not see the times they just sat in the park? Would he ever pass by a rabbit and not immediately think of her? Every time someone said 'protect,' her heart would jump. Whenever she saw a Tuxedo her breath would catch in her lungs. Roses simply made her cry.

Usagi would have stood there all day if it was not for the sudden honking horn. On the street, someone had crossed on a red light. Realizing the time, she dashed in the direction of her school. Despite getting up early and leaving on time, Usagi was almost late to class.

"Cutting it a little close there, aren't you, Odango?" Seiya leaned over his desk, propping himself up on the back of her chair as she hunched over a sheet of stationary.

"Hmm." Pulling out her unfinished homework, she maneuvered her books and notebooks around so that the piece of paper was always accessible. Her pencil was poised over the paper, but nothing would come to mind. Absently, she jerked her head in her friend's direction. "Don't call me that."

Class started soon after that, not giving the idol any time to come up with any form of retort. Through the morning Usagi found herself glancing at the door, expecting to see the cold boy from yesterday. By lunch, she figured that perhaps Haruka was wrong and that Minori would be going to a different school altogether.

Usagi grabbed her lunch and headed toward the door to meet up with the girls, but before she could Seiya called out to her. "Are you okay?"

That was the answer of the week, it seemed. She could not shake this feeling of being _not_ okay. Something was intrinsically wrong in her universe aside from no response to her letters, but for the life of her she could not figure out what. Still she turned, bright smile in place. "Of course! I just ran late this morning and didn't get breakfast."

This small lie would hopefully make people stop worrying about her. When they worried, she just felt worse.

xoxoxox

Michiru sifted through the neatly packed box and wondered if they would find what they were looking for. She doubted that the records would be in a box marked 'kitchen,' but they continued on it became obvious that Usagi'd had a hand in helping Mamoru pack. The girl, not the most organized on her best days, had been such an emotional mess by the end of her assistance that finding something in the wrong box was not too much of a stretch.

If it were only Mamoru who had packed, she knew that they would indeed be in the box marked 'important papers.' Perhaps even 'office.' It was obvious to see which boxes had not been packed by him, given the near childish scrawl, and with the obvious already checked they set about going through these others.

"This is nearly impossible. Doesn't Kitten know _anything_ about packing?" Haruka threw a can of shaving cream back in the box marked 'dishes.' "Remind me again why we're here?"

Stifling a chuckle, Michiru opened a box meant to be for movies and sifted through a few forks. "Because you're the one who insisted 'Minori' goes to school. So we are here to get Mamoru's transcripts." The plan was to alter the names and dates, which would be easier than just completely forging an entire new set of paperwork. It eliminated much of the guess work and would give the man turned boy a sense of self.

"It'd be easier with Ami," Haruka grumbled as she hoisted the heaviest so far, marked 'pillows.' "Girl's a genius when it comes to computers. Bet she could whip these papers up in no time flat."

"Oh?" Michiru drifted toward her very special someone and bumped her hip against the taller girl. "How do you know so much about Usagi's friends?"

"Why? Jealous?" Reaching in the box and shoving aside a completely random teddy bear, Haruka's eyes widened. "Victory may be ours."

"It usually is." Michiru assisted Haruka in pulling out the file folders. "We should really ask her what her organizational method is."

"Get the packing done as quick as possible so that she could enjoy alone time with lover boy." She tossed the first folder aside after flipping through it. "Which, knowing Kitten, involved PG rated cuddles. And cupcakes."

Michiru bit her lip as she pulled something out of the box. "Oh, I wouldn't be too sure about that." It was a pajama top. Though it was nothing risque, it was definitely feminine and way to small for Mamoru.

Haruka clenched her jaw as she swiped the top away. "It involved PG rated cuddles and cupcakes."

Patting her lover's arm, Michiru picked up a folder. "Whatever you say, Papa Haruka." Her eyebrows rose as she flipped through the papers. "Well, looks like we found what we were looking for."

"If it got above PG, I'd have to kill him all over again."

Michiru took in the tense stance, the clenched fist, and knew that it was not just Usagi's innocence that was troubling Haruka. Stepping close, she caressed one cheek while kissing the other. "If it makes you feel better, I'm not the most comfortable with this situation either." She folded her hands neatly over the tall shoulder and rested her cheek on her fingers. Her eyes were trained upward, not allowing the taller woman to escape physically or mentally. "But you have seen him, you know him. No matter what life, he _would_ do whatever it takes to keep her safe."

"Yeah, but in _that_ body? I was afraid that if I sneezed I'd knock him over." She sighed, glancing down into blue green eyes. "Its not just that. Normally, I wouldn't doubt that he wanted to keep her safe. But he doesn't want to be here, Michiru. He doesn't want to _be._"

Neptune's eyes widened slightly before she understood. "I would feel the same in his situation. But I'd like to think I would still do what I could for the one I loved, even if she wasn't exactly who I fell in love with."

Haruka regarded her for a couple seconds before laughing. "Now I'm the one who's jealous."

Raising a delicate brow, Michiru grinned. "Of yourself?"

"Well, it wouldn't be me, so damn right."

xoxoxox

Jupiter could feel the power of the trees engulf her as she volleyed her most powerful attack against the phage. It did a considerable amount of damage, but nothing seemed to slow it down. They needed to buy some time before Sailor Moon arrived.

Sailor Equine, a rather horsey phage, threw a volley of exploding horse shoes at the girls. They hurt like hell and pissed her off. Electrical current circled around her, tingling along her skin, before she sent a wave of lightning at the phage hard enough to daze it.

Sailor Moon showed up then, late and lacking a certain vibrant gleam. She made quick work of the phage before rushing to check on the hapless victim.

"There's something wrong with her," Makoto commented as she and Venus detransformed. "Have you noticed it too?"

Minako contemplated the direction where Sailor Moon still sat with unconscious former enemy. "Well yes, but I thought it was because she missed Mamoru."

"No, its something more. Besides that, I mean." Makoto contemplated the shorter girl's actions for a few more seconds before giving a mild shrug. "I'm sure she'd tell us if it were something important."

Still, it had surprised her when Usagi had not started gushing over the letters she received from Mamoru. It was one thing she had been so certain would happen, and even looked forward to. There was nothing of the sort, and the young girl only commented on him if she were asked directly.

The urge to protect and coddle welled up within her, forcing her to call out an invitation as Usagi stepped from behind the trees, readjusting her school top. "Usagi, I'm going to be baking after school today. Want to come over?"

Eyes lighting up, Usagi grabbed onto her arms and nodded. "Can I lick the spoon?"

Makoto chuckled and patted the girl's back. "Tell you what. You can even lick the bowl." She turned to the collective group of senshi, each one now in civilian form. "Anyone else want to come over?"

In the end, due to cram schools, chores, and a mountain of homework, Usagi ended up being the only one coming home with her. Makoto made a mental stock of baking supplies she had at home. They should not need to run to the store unless they wanted to make something with lime.

When they reached her apartment, Usagi climbed up on a stool next to the counter to watch Makoto as she worked, The tall girl was sure that if she ever had a child, the would not be nearly as exuberant about watching her bake cookies as Usagi was.

The silence was comfortable, and Makoto was not exactly comfortable with breaking it, but curiosity weighed her down. "So, hear any exciting news from America lately?"

To her surprise Usagi just shrugged. "Nothing new, really. He's been busy."

Busy. That's always how Mamoru was, busy. Never happy, or sad, or homesick. Makoto beat the eggs into the cookie batter with perhaps a bit more force than necessary. It would not hurt Mamoru to tell Usagi how he was _feeling,_ not what he was _doing._ But then, this was Mamoru, and despite being one of the better ones he was still a guy. And guys tended to shy away from such things as discussing how they felt.

Makoto's forms of emotional expression, while there, were physical. If someone pissed her off, a quick punch to the face was quite an effective means of telling them that they suck. Talking about how she felt, while possible for her to do so, was much like being bilingual in that it took a few moments for her mind to translate from fists to words. It was mostly because of this girl, though, that it was not a foreign language altogether.

"How are you doing, Usagi?" In honor of her friend coming over, she decided that the bunny shaped cookie cutter was in order.

"I'm fine, honest, I promise I'm fine!" The blonde was a bit too persistent in her claim, but it was more the white knuckles on the stirring spoon that alerted Makoto to her distress. "I just miss him, is all. I'll be fine, I promise. So please just stop worrying about me so much?"

Makoto placed the cookies in the oven. "Of course I'm going to worry. You're one of my best friends."

"But if people worry about me over this, then how can they trust me with something as important as stopping the phages? Its not that big a deal, really, and we've been through so much worse!" Makoto turned in surprise at the sound of a sniff. Though she was not crying, Usagi was holding back a few tears.

She wrapped her arms around the small frame of the girl, holding her tight and close. This was another thing that may as well have been a foreign language to her a few years ago, but now she could see no other way to console a hurting friend.

"I think we'd have a hard time trusting you if you _didn't_ feel this way." Her fingertips stroked silky blond hair. "You feel the way you need to. No more worrying about us worrying. It's what we're here for, Usagi."

Small hands clutched at her sides as Usagi burrowed closer with a loud sniff. "Thank you."

"Don't worry about it. Besides, we have all the time in the world, if you need it. Or at least fifteen minutes when the cookies are done."

The answering giggle, though full of tears, was perhaps the most honest one Makoto had heard from the girl in weeks. Though she knew not everything was better now, she vowed that she would keep an eye on the girl.

xoxoxox

Sleep eluded him once more as nightmares twisted about his subconscious. Cleaning and repairing was the only way he knew to keep his mind occupied. The shack itself had a sound foundation, with little plumbing and electrical issues aside from a groan and flicker. They could wait for awhile, and in the mean time he was hard at work getting the rest of the place presentable.

Endymion stretched as he surveyed the walls, pleased with his progress. Despite the sudden lack of height, reaching the higher cracks only required the aide of a stepping ladder.

Earlier Pluto had gone and acquired the necessary supplies he would need for tonight's project. His goal was to spackle the cracks and prepare the room for painting. He would likely need to wait for the weekend, as his schedule was suddenly dominated by school, but the preparation would take away much of the headache during the actual painting process. With slow measured strokes, he covered the cracks.

Stepping back to inspect his work, hand wiping over his brow, he looked around the small shack that was slowly looking more like a home.

He had to wonder though. What was a shack doing on Pluto's property?

_**-End Chapter Six**_


	7. Too Cool for School

**Rating:** PG-13

**Disclaimer: I** don't own them. If I did, there would have been even more angst in Sailor Stars.

**Summary:** In the attempt to save the royal family from temporal disaster, Pluto succeeds in saving only one. The only time they can go is a time where neither exist, a young girl hurts, and the ability to fix things is still within reach.

**Chapter Seven -**Too Cool for School

She awoke to the grazing of claws against her skin. "Usagi, you're going to be late!"

The immediate jerk of surprise jerked her from sleep, though not enough to become completely cognizant of her surroundings. Her hand, feeling a hundred times heavier and a thousand times more difficult to maneuver, reached for her bedside and finally managed to grab hold of her alarm clock. Usagi stared at it, sleep fogged mind not quite comprehended what she was seeing, before collapsing back onto her mattress.

"Usagi!" This time the claws did not just graze her skin. One or two stuck in her skin, and it was only through years of experience that she did not jerk her arm away.

"Luna, five more minutes." Her mumblings were barely comprehensible to anyone who had not spent countless mornings waking her up.

"You're not going to be able to make it to school in time if you get 'five more minutes!'" The cat hopped to the end of the bed where she grabbed the blanket between her teeth. Determination gleaming in her eye, she leaped as far as she could onto the floor. The resulting squeal assured her that one way or another, her charge should be fully awake.

"Luna, what- Oh my goodness, I'm going to be late! Why didn't you wake me earlier?" Usagi jumped out of her bed and scrambled around, preparing for the day.

xoxoxox

He awoke well before his alarm went off, dressed and ready before the sun rose. Endymion spent the better part of the early morning at the small table, going over the material currently being studied in his classes. Piping hot tea kept his company while the light breakfast he choked down settled heavy in his stomach. Going back to school, after so many years, had him more unsettled than he would care to admit.

Pluto, so far as he could tell, was still asleep. Despite it being his first day at school, he did not want to disturb her needed rest. She had been working herself to exhaustion lately, and allowing her a few hours rest was the least he could do. Besides, it was not as though he needed her to hold his hand while he went to school. The campus was not too far from where they were staying, and he had all the necessary paperwork ready in his case. He was certain he did not want to know exactly what they did to get the papers ready, but so far as he could tell they at least appeared legitimate.

After reviewing what would be studied in math he glanced at the clock. It was time to properly dress and get on his way.

xoxoxox

"I'm sorry Chibi-Chibi, I can't play right now!" Usagi's mouth foamed with toothpaste as she ran a comb through her slightly tangled pigtails. The little girl kept tugging at her skirt, giving small whimpers. Since the park, the girl had become increasingly restless.

"Chibi-Chibi!" She bounced as she tugged, making it impossible for Usagi too keep her toothbrush in her mouth.

"I'm sorry, but I can't! I still got to grab breakfast then mail a letter to Mamo-chan." Would she had time? She hoped so. She knew she needed to invest in a louder alarm clock!

"_Mamo-chan!" _When Usagi looked down at the urgent tone, she saw tears brimming in Chibi-Chibi's eyes.

Her toothbrush stilled in her mouth. Sighing, she spit out the paste and rinsed her mouth before picking the small girl up. "Don't worry, I'll play with you when I get home, I promise." She picked up a washcloth and wiped those large wet eyes. "So be good for me and wait until I get home, okay?"

Chibi-Chibi whimpered but nodded, crashing her hug against Usagi's shoulder in a hug. Patting the tiny back, Usagi allowed herself a moment to rock the young girl back and forth. "There's a good girl."

xoxoxox

The school uniform was stiff and scratchy with being so new. Uranus had dropped it off with the paperwork he needed to enroll, along with a few other essentials he had not thought about. It had been near an eternity since he had needed to think about school, and what had once been so obvious easily slipped his mind.

Grabbing the white slippers and his school bag, he glanced around the small building. "I'm off," he called out quietly, receiving the answer he expected. Silence.

Outside, the sun was shining in the early morning air. Birds sang, children laughed, and the atmosphere was altogether happy. It only served to further his agitation.

Endymion made it a block before a car pulled up beside him. "Yo."

"I happen to know how to walk myself to school, you know." He did not turn to the woman in the car, knowing she would keep following him regardless of what he did.

"A bit presumptuous this morning, aren't you. Who said anything about driving you to school, King?"

His face flushed despite himself. "Why else would you come over so early, follow me, and annoy the cars behind you?"

"Busted." She hollered something indecent to the angry motorists behind her. "Hop on in."

"Why? The school's not that far from here."

Haruka turned the corner and put the car into park, effectively cutting off his path. "Two reasons. I woke up and left my warm, comfortable, and very inviting bed to come here this early just to drop you off at school."

Endymion slung his bag over one shoulder. "What's the other reason?"

"You're going the wrong way."

xoxoxox

Somehow, despite waking up late and stopping to mail her letter, Usagi was once again just barely on time for class. She had a bit more of her homework done, but it wasn't complete and she was sure more than one problem was wrong. She would bet her allowance on it.

The teacher had been called to the office, so while he was away Usagi frantically tried to finish as many problems as she could. The answers were rushed and likely wrong, but eventually she became of the mind that it did not matter so long as she had _something_ written down.

An eraser bumped her elbow. "Hey Odango, what did you get for number twelve?"

She glowered at Seiya from the corner of her eye as she flipped the page over. "Boston."

"You're kidding, right?" There was a suspicious thunk behind her. "Odango, this is math class!"

Furiously, she erased her answer and struggled for a new one. "I know that! Why are you asking me, anyway?" Realization dawned on her. "I get it! You're trying to cheat, aren't you?"

The sudden silence made her turn around. His face was on the desk, shoulders shaking as he held his sides. "You would be the _last_ person I cheat off of!"

Usagi growled as she stood, fists at her side. "_What?_ Then why were you asking me?"

Seiya managed to contain himself long enough to look up. His mirth was still evident as his eyes shown bright. "I just wanted to make sure you did the homework this time." He leaned back, hands behind his head, as he shot the most infuriating smirk ever. And coming from him, that was a feat. "_Odango._"

"Don't call me that!" Annoyed, she would have done something drastic such as slap her hands on his desk, but noise at the door filtered in through her enraged brain. Quick as she could Usagi spun and sat, hands folded in front of her as she graced the chalkboard with a serene smile.

The homeroom teacher, a strict man with a no nonsense attitude that made Miss Haruna a saint on her bad days, walked in the room. He was flanked by a familiar boy that had Usagi perking up at her desk.

"Class, this is Minori Shinji-"

"Shinji Minori," the boy interrupted.

"-and he will be joining our class for the rest of the term."

Usagi waved at her new classmate, glad to see he had made it safe and sound to their school. He regarded her with the same aloof look he'd had at the park before his eyes snapped just slightly to her left. His gaze sharpened to a cold glower and Usagi felt the temperature drop by at least fifteen degrees.

Not sure what to expect, she turned to see the same look on Seiya. There was something passing between the two of them, unspoken words that she would probably never understand. It made her feel as though she were suddenly caught between two friends, even if one was a boy she just met and the other was Seiya.

Nervous laughter bubbled out of her chest, louder than she would have thought. It worked in one way, in that Minori's eyes returned to her. However, it also drew the attention of the teacher.

"Tsukino, perhaps you'd like to show Shinji around during lunch." His voice made it clear it was supposed to be some sort of punishment, but Usagi could not see why, before he turned to Minori. "And while you're at it, take the seat next to her."

Instead of coming right over, Minori turned to speak to the teacher in soft tones. Usagi could not hear anything that he said, but the teacher's response was loud enough for all in the room to hear. "I don't care what your issues are with Tsukino. You have your seating arrangement."

She would have expected the room to fall in the general laughter that usually accompanied such an embarrassing revelation. Instead, there was a silence so thick she thought she might drown in it. She kept her eyes trained on her homework, unsure how she was supposed to feel about this. Why did the teacher's words made her chest ache, when she hardly knew the boy at all? He had no obligation to sit next to her.

"Alright class," the teacher said as Minori took his seat. "Turn to page two-seventy-six in your books."

Usagi turned to the page, but the words just blurred together. A moment of inactivity beside her caused her to turn. Minori's intense stare froze her in her seat, capturing her. There was something about his eyes she felt she should know better than her own. It was there, just beyond her grasp, but all she knew was that they made her feel a pang of homesickness so strong it stole her breath.

No matter how hard she tried she could not look away.

"Sorry," he mumbled, tearing his eyes away from her. He pulled a notebook from his school bag, pen firmly grasped between fingers.

Something tickled her cheek. With a flinch, her fingers swiped at the irritant, only to come away moist. Shocked, Usagi stared at the smear of tears. Why? Why did one look from him cause such a reaction? She knew it had nothing to do with what the teacher said. It was something else that she was not seeing it, but the answer eluded her.

He had no book, she vaguely realized, and she pushed her open one between them.

xoxoxox

The time for this change was long over due. She could not expect her king to adjust properly when she was constantly hanging around his living area. He had centuries of habit ingrained in him, and though there were many he could not do, she was not about to stand in his way of doing what he could do.

The main house was full of phantom memories as dust settled on otherwise pristine surfaces. Minor house hold items slightly out of place showed a woman in the middle of living, only to be snuffed from existence by a quirk of time. Perhaps the most prevalent was the setting at the table, food half eaten and molding, and a small pile of papers beside it.

Pluto did a brief walk through, opening windows and doors to get rid of the stale smell lingering in the air. As she moved she could not help but wonder how it would be to walk through this place that was no longer ever hers. Borrowed memories etched in every surface, being surrounded by the constant reminders that she never even existed, everything threatened to overwhelm her. There was no way she could stay here without something to occupy her mind.

The stack of papers on the table triggered something in the corner of her subconscious, just the minute feeling that she should know what they were for. Discarding the dishes in the sink, she glanced through them, eyebrows raising at the sight at what they saw. An application for an interesting position was already mostly filled out, all that was left was a few bits of personal information and the location of choice.

It would give her a chance to escape this place for a large portion of many of the days and the opportunity to discretely accomplish something that was of prime importance.

With a decisive nod she checked the appropriate box. Though not trained through the legal means of today's society, Pluto was certain that her centuries of experience would aid her. Picking up her purse and sliding the application in a briefcase, she slipped through the front door.

xoxoxox

"And this is where we all go for lunch." The tour had been relatively brief. He did not blame her, especially considering how this morning went.

Endymion's teeth ground together at how the teacher had blatantly disregarded his desire for discretion. Not only did the entire room hear the answer, but due to only having heard one side, they believed he had something against the girl. He had merely suggested that perhaps it would not be wise for him to sit beside her. What he had not said was that in doing so, he knew he would spend the vast majority of class completely distracted.

He had a duty to watch after her, to evaluate the potential threat from all angles. How was he supposed to do that if he was forced to sit so close to her?

"Did you bring your lunch?"

His bag was light. Hadn't he planned a lunch for today? Still, there was no food on him, so he shook his head.

"I could- I suppose-" Usagi swallowed hard. "I could share."

He snorted as he shook his head. "I know better than to get between you and food."

Usagi's eyes widened. "What?"

Endymion realized his slip. Perhaps nothing too glaringly obvious, but he had to be careful. He had to insert some measure of space between them, emotionally if not physically. "Sorry, Tsukino. Haruka warned me."

"Well, Haruka knows what's best for you, I'm sure," she replied with a haughty sniff, plopping right there beneath a tree and opened her lunch. "I don't want you to lose a limb, so you can forget my offer."

He just leaned against the tree. It was safer, watching her from behind. He did not have to face her, and she didn't look at him with those eyes. As he watched her eat he smiled softly at how her exuberance for food had changed very little over the years. In public Serenity ate with as much grace and dignity as she could muster. In private, she tore into her meals with a gusto that verily rivaled what he was witnessing now.

"You know, you don't have to stay so near me," she told him in between bites. "I know you weren't too eager to sit next to me in class."

He could only offer her part of the truth. "He completely misunderstood what I said."

Usagi turned at his words and gave a tiny smile that slowly grew until her face glowed. "I'm glad."

This was why he had wanted to sit away from her in class. He could not just sit there and pretend he felt nothing for her. There was no way he could act as though she held his world in her hands. He just was not strong enough. Because when she smiled he was powerless to deny her anything.

Clearing his throat, Endymion pressed his back to the tree and looked away from her. "So what do we have next?"

"After lunch is English. And its my worst subject after math." Finished with her lunch already she packed up her box and stood. "But we have some time still, so I can show you around some more."

She took a step and then her foot caught on a root. Endymion jerked forward to help, but there was still some adjustment he needed to make in his new body. His arms and legs, not quite long enough, did not reach her in time as she landed hard on the ground.

He stood there frozen, hands still poised to catch her. He knew what should come next and tensed, preparing for the onslaught. It came swift and loud and he had absolutely no idea how to handle it anymore.

"Um, Tsukino, are you okay?" Endymion's quiet voice faltered. How did strangers handle it when she cried?

His question caused her to cry louder, wailing that it hurt. It probably did not hurt that much, but he had come to realize over the years that she did not have the highest tolerance for pain.

"Tsukino, I thought you were dying!" Their homeroom teacher rounded the corner and slowed his jog, thoroughly annoyed. "Shinji, take her to the nurse's office."

"Right." He grasped her around the waist. "You heard the man."

He lifted her, but it was hard to maneuver a crying girl when all she wanted to do was cry for another two minutes. Her uncooperative weight pushed and pulled at his center of gravity until it forced him over. The tree was in the way, scraping the skin beneath his top and cheek. He landed with a heavy thud on the ground, her weight knocking the breath from his lungs.

"Minori! Are you okay?" Her tears forgotten, Usagi hovered over him, pressing her hand against the abrasion on his face.

Biting back a gasp at the feel of her fingers, Endymion pressed into her palm as his eyes slid shut. When he realized what he was doing, he jerked his head back and stood, stretching through the pull along the scrapes. "Its Fine. Do you know where the nurse's office is? We need to get you looked at."

She kept apologizing the entire way and would not believe his mild assurances that all was fine. Finally he stopped at the door to the nurse's office and grabbed her elbow. "Look, I've had a lot worse than this. It barely even hurts, and you didn't do it on purpose. So enough already."

Usagi seemed ready to argue but at the last second merely nodded. Rolling his eyes, Endymion pushed his way into the office.

A familiar face greeted him. "Ah, Minori. What brings you and Usagi here today?" Pluto gave the two students a warm smile. Usagi looked happy to see the older senshi. Endymion just stared at the woman, wondering how it was she came to be here.

"I'm pretty sure you can get in trouble for this," he told her.

"For what, Minori?" Her eyes widened to complete innocence. "I have the right credentials. I applied like everyone else. It is not my fault they approved me right away."

"Setsuna!" Usagi clapped her hands together. "Are you working here now? As the nurse?"

Pluto nodded. "Yes. I had started to fill out the application weeks ago, but with everything that came up it just sort of slipped my mind." She leveled her gaze at Endymion. "I do admit, part of the reason I finished the application was so that I could keep my eye on people." He felt his cheeks burn. She did not believe that he could accomplish this on his own, so she came here to make sure he did not do anything stupid. "Now, lets see about getting you two fixed up."

By the end, Usagi was happily sporting a cartoon band aid on her knee and humming around a lollipop. His skin still burned where the antiseptic was applied. The only injury he got that required a bandage was on his face, the tape itching his skin and tugging in the small hairs. If he smiled it tugged on both the wound and the tape, making it both uncomfortable and awkward. Fortunately for him he had no plans of smiling any time soon.

"Pluto, what exactly _are_ you doing here?" He managed to get her to the corner of the room where they could talk with little risk of being overheard.

"I told you before, you're all I have left." She straightened her uniform and flashed him a sharp look. "And you must call me Setsuna or Ms. Meioh here, _my king."_

He nodded and glanced at the floor, not believing that he slipped like that. "I told you I could handle this."

"Haruka and Michiru have voiced their concerns over a group of sailor senshi from beyond this solar system. They believe they are not to be trusted, and I would prefer it if I was near you both in case something happened." Her gaze was sympathetic yet unyielding. "I know it is your desire to protect the princess. But it is my _duty_ to protect you both."

Nodding, he turned to Usagi. "We'd better head back to class."

"Do we have to?" She slid off the cot anyway. "I'm glad you're working here, Setsuna! We can see each other more often this way."

"I have no doubt of that," Setsuna replied with a grin.

"Come on, Tsukino. We missed enough class as it is."

She rolled her eyes at him. "You know, you _can_ call me Usagi."

It was so unsettling, being only a few inches taller than her. The difference made her appear larger than life. "Uh, Usak-" he cleared his throat to hide his near slip. "I think I'll stick with Tsukino."

_**-End Chapter Seven**_


	8. Slow Spiral

**Rating:** PG-13

**Disclaimer: **I don't own them. If I did, there would have been even more angst in Sailor Stars.

**Summary:** In the attempt to save the royal family from temporal disaster, Pluto succeeds in saving only one. The only time they can go is a time where neither exist, a young girl hurts, and the ability to fix things is still within reach.

**AN: **I live! Sorry about the delay on this. School decided to eat my brains, along with SML. I had tests and icons and drabbles and and and it was horrible! Okay, school is. SML is keeping me sane.

I have a test and a project due this coming up Thursday, so I can't guarantee I'll be updating before then, but I have a nice, long weekend coming up after that.

A quick question for you all. Should I do another chapter of filler such as this, or go on and progress the plot? I ask this because I don't want it to move to fast, yet at the same time I don't want it to move too slowly. (If you want filler, anything in particular you wanna see?)

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Eight-<strong>Slow Spiral

Seiya glared at the boy sitting beside Usagi. One week, the brat had been here. One week and all he did was just _sit_ there. And what did Odango do? She was so _Odangoish_ and was nice and cheerful, the exact opposite of the boy's dour disposition. It was like the guy could not even stand Usagi, and yet every time Seiya turned around, there the boy was.

It was not fair, not to Usagi. She did not deserve half the things the kid did, and though she made sure to let her displeasure be known, it still rankled to know that someone other than him could get such a rise out of her.

Their homeroom teacher had left early to attend some family emergency, and so it was a free study period. There was not really any actual studying going on, especially by the two in front of him. Usagi was once again writing to her poor excuse of a boyfriend while Minori was busy being an arrogant prick. Napping, to be more precise, but even when asleep, Seiya knew the boy was no different than when he was awake.

"Hey, Odango," he whispered, unable to stay quiet any longer. "You got a pencil I could borrow?"

The girl absently felt around her desk for the utensil in question before handing it over, eyes never leaving the page.

Taking it, he raked the lead over a sheet of paper, meaningless lines forming a mass of lead vomit. "You know, tomorrow's Valentine's day. You getting anything for anybody?"

"Yes," she grumbled, distracted. "You're getting a rock."

"A rock? You really shouldn't have. They make nice pets." Or so he heard. "So what did you get Sleeping Beauty?"

He could hear the grin in her voice. "Chocolate, of course."

Insulted, he gasped. "You would get one so mean to you some chocolate, while I only get a rock? You are cold!"

She snorted. "He isn't mean. And besides," she spun in her chair and stuck her tongue out at him. "He doesn't call me Odango."

Seiya shook his head. "So very cold."

Just then the door opened. The class tried to look productive, all except Minori who was likely drooling. Usagi leaned over and gently shook his shoulder, murmuring something he could not hear. A pang of jealousy lanced through his chest at the image the two made, forcing him to look elsewhere.

The class president, returning from a student council meeting, delivered the news of the day. It was the same stuff they heard every day, except for what was at the end. "And we would like to remind you that this class is scheduled for inoculations this afternoon."

"Inoculations?" Minori slunk down in his seat. "As in shots, right?"

"Generally that is what an inoculation is, Mr. Shinji." The class president sniffed, looking down her nose at the boy for a moment. In that second, Seiya found himself feeling bad for the new kid, who was suddenly the center of attention.

Then he was over it as he snorted. "Come on, there's nothing to fear from sharp, pointy, and probably _rusty _needles."

xoxoxox

The bed towered above her, making her climb a perilous journey. Chibi-Chibi was determined, though, for up there she could be both comfortable and see when Usagi came home. Using the corner of the blanket she pulled herself up, sticking her tiny foot against the dresser for leverage. After a brief struggle she was firmly on the mattress when she scampered to the window to look out to the sidewalk below. It was too early, but Chibi-Chibi still kept vigil. When Usagi returned home, perhaps they could go to the park, or enjoy some snacks. Or maybe they could go see him.

Time and space, once a mysterious force, had become near second nature to her as her lives passed by. She recognized what others could or would not; saw how an event could alter time's course. It was no difficult task, then, to recognize the other half of her soul. He was younger, yes, and there was something in him slowly dying, but she would have to be struck of all her senses before recognizing him became an issue. It was him, he was there when he should not have been, and she had desperately missed him.

Mamoru, Endymion. King, prince. Boyfriend, husband. There were so many names he carried, yet no matter the time and place he was still who he had always been.

It had been a little over a week according to the calendar, an eternity according to a child's perception of time, since she had seen him. She honestly had not been expecting him to be here, but now that he was, her mission became that much more pertinent. He had always given her a cause, and the visual reminder that he existed in this world only bolstered her will.

Of course, he had the same scent of distorted time around his body that she did. How was he here? If he were from the past or the future, why did no one else notice? How could Usagi not recognize that which was so obvious? Why _would_ he hide it? So many questions tumbled about in her mind until she was so confused she forgot what she was doing. The price of being so young was one gained the mentality that came with it. She knew all that she should, yet she was still just a child. She only hoped her presence would be enough to steer events the way they should go.

With a sigh, exaggerated so that the stuffed rabbit in the corner could appreciate the seriousness of her determination, she scooted off the bed and toddled down stairs. There Mama-Ikuko stood at the stove cooking, just as Chibi-Chibi remembered from dreams of another life.

Suddenly feeling alone, she crept toward the towering leg of the Tsukino matriarch and held on. A small whimper escaped her throat when a large kind hand brushed over her hair.

xoxoxox

Setsuna waved as the last of the students filed out of her office, all except one. She figured with his phobia, adding a crowd would only make the situation worse.

"It is time, my king."

Endymion stared at her, then the chair she motioned toward, wary as a gazelle scenting a lion for the first time. "Can we not and say we did?"

"I wish to minimize the amount of forging we must do," she informed him as she slipped on a new pair of gloves. He crept slowly toward the chair as she gathered the necessary supplies.

"I technically don't even need these, you know. We haven't had to have them for centuries now." Ever so slowly, with muscled tense and eyes alert, he slid on the chair. His arms remained tight at his sides.

"That is because we no longer need them in the future. Those illnesses no longer exist." She brought the tray near his seat, perching herself on the end of her desk. "Now, you're technically the student most in need of these. I already had my injections earlier today."

Endymion gulped and shifted his eyes elsewhere as he ever so slowly brought his left arm toward her. Setsuna exhaled through her nose, wondering how he could still have such an aversion to needles after so many centuries. "Take your mind off it, my king. Think of something else."

"Easy for you to say," he grumbled, foot bouncing, eyes squeezed shut. "So tell me, how long have you been doing this?"

Her lips quirked. "Not long, as you know. About a week."

"Where'd you get your license?" His eyes popped open as he turned toward her, expression earnest. "You do know what you're doing, right?"

The needle pause, poised over his skin, as she regarded him for a long second. What she had believed to be an attempt at small talk seemed to be something else entirely. His expression was not that of someone teasing, but of someone seriously frightened.

"As you know, I am experienced in this field. I have had more than a lifetime to learn this hobby." His gaze was still blank. "You were there when I gained my certification, my king."

Slowly his vision cleared and when he blinked, he was no longer some stranger, but the very patriarch she had spent countless lifetimes admiring. "Of course I was. Why wouldn't I have been?"

While he was distracted, she made quick work of his injections. "You seem to have experienced another lapse."

Endymion scoffed through his wince. "Lapse? It was just the fear, Pluto. Nothing serious, I assure you."

Setsuna said nothing. This was not the first she had noticed something being not right with her king. Earlier, he had stared blankly at a sheet of paper whereas fifteen minutes before he had been writing an essay on Japanese history by memory alone. Then there was the incident with the folder, where he had sifted through the drawings, asking questions about the artist as he went. It was not until he reached the bottom of the stack, where a childish family portrait was scribbled with familiar names that he realized who the artist was. For the length of time he had been searching through the folder, she had to wonder if he even remembered he had once had a daughter.

"We are done here," she informed him as she slipped off her gloves, unable to look him fully in the face. "If you would wait a few minutes, we could go home together."

"I promise you I'm fine. I just haven't been sleeping well."

That, she knew, but she paused in her cleaning anyway. "When was the last time you got some decent sleep?"

"This morning in class," he admitted. "Before that? Before we got here."

She did not have to think to realize why he could have gotten better sleep in a hard chair than he could in a bed. "And how was it?"

"I dreamed of home."

xoxoxox

_Moonlight filtered through the curtain to splash over form without feature. Usagi knew who it was, just as she knew she should not open the closet door. Chibi-Usa._

_"Why?" Usagi wondered over so many things that she did not know specifically what she asked, but knew this child would know._

_"Your future, my past, are both gone. You know this, yet you deny it. You keep it locked away. Why?"_

_Usagi knew what was behind the closet door. A truth, vile and disgusting, one that she would never recover from. "Because I don't want to know anymore."_

_"But you do. It's deep and locked away, but it's there. It's why you can hardly breathe without crying, why you avoid looking for the truth in other things. Because if you do, you know you will face this truth, as well." The form that had once been the future Princess Serenity glided across the floor. The face tilted up, void of any form. "He is disappearing. Vanishing before your eyes, and there is nothing you can do to stop it."_

_"Who?"_

_There was a sigh. "The truthful child. His time of remembrance is nearly at an end." Chibi-Usa took a step toward Usagi, then another, the slow cadence causing the taller girl to back away just as slowly. "He will mourn and not know why, love and wonder why, and fight without knowing who for. His lies will be your truth, and your truth will tear apart his lies."_

_Usagi pressed against the wall beside the rattling closet door. Her heart hammered in her chest as she wished to run, though she knew not why. "Why do you keep coming to me?"_

_The featureless form, the one Usagi knew to be her daughter of the future, sagged in on itself, indistinct appendages wrapping around the middle. "I don't want to be forgotten."_

_"I could never forget you!"_

_"You're _lying!_" The voice echoed on the walls, shrill and desperate. "You're already forgetting without even knowing! Soon all I will be is a distant cousin that you barely remember, and what I really am will be lost! I don't want to leave, Mama!"_

_The last word, foreign to her ears, spurred her panic to a higher note. "I won't forget! I'll write about you, I'll make myself remember!"_

_"You won't, because you won't even look at _this!_" Fingers wrapped around the handle of the closet door before pulling back, revealing the scene that lay beyond._

_It was a scene, or two juxtaposed on one another. One of her on a street, crying into the arms of a king with no castle, and the other of a man in a mask fading from existence._

_"_No!_" Forceful hands shoved the door closed._

Usagi awoke to a wet face, not knowing why she was crying. Already the dream was fading, and all she remembered of it was there was someone she needed to never forget.

She took her time getting out of bed. A part of her dreaded this day just as she looked forward to it. Chocolate was made, with the help of her mother, for all her friends. She even had a package made up to send to Mamoru. Still she dreaded the day, knowing that the one she wanted to be with was nowhere near.

Rolling out of bed, she soothed the stirring Chibi-Chibi before slipping into a robe. Still half asleep, she staggered to the closet where she grabbed a random assortment of clothing and headed toward the bathroom.

Being Sunday meant she would have to deliver the chocolates to most everyone tomorrow. For now, she could deliver some to those close by, maybe even see if anyone had no plans for the day. She wanted to keep busy, did not want to remember why it felt as though something hard and sticky had settled tight in her chest.

Chibi-Chibi was awake when she returned to the room, dressed only as a young child could dress by herself. Her shirt was untucked, her pants only on one leg, and her shoes were from two different pair. With a giggle, Usagi forgot her troubles and went to help the young girl finish getting ready for the day.

When the child was dressed properly, the two set out. Juuban Park stood between Usagi and most of her destinations, so it was an obvious detour. However, she was not expecting the onslaught of memories to sweep over her as she encountered familiar places. The same ice cream vendor that Mamoru had taken her to, the boat rental, the park bench where they had spent countless afternoons just sitting and being; all of this invaded her senses to such an extent that she did not realize when the small hand clutching hers was gone.

xoxoxox

This day. He remembered celebrating this day, and then honoring the memory of it when Crystal Tokyo rose. It was always one of her favorite holidays, a day to give when she already gave so much.

He stared unseeing at the fountain across the path. If any day was worth skipping, this would be it. Setsuna had other plans, had woken him before he was ready, and had sent him on his way. She was still on edge about his lapse yesterday, and Endymion had caught her with a strange look on her face more than once. So it was either suffer under her gaze or suffer in a mock semblance of privacy.

He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees as he buried his face in his hands. He tried to remember every detail, every nuance of his wife's features. It was elusive, though. He could not quite remember the exact shade of her eyes, or just how her hair felt between his fingers. Pressing his palms into his eyes, he tried to force the memory to come. In the end, it was not his wife he was seeing, but the sad smile of Tsukino Usagi.

Endymion jerked upright. How could he think of another when his wife had barely been dead a fortnight? Shaking himself of these unnatural thoughts, he leaned his head back over the edge of the bench. He struggled to remember some important factor, something that would tie the two together.

It came to him, and he wondered how he could forget this important fact that held more truth than his own breath. How could he have forgotten, even for a second, that Usagi was his wife? Not now, perhaps, but she one day would be. Or not his, but another his.

Deciding to blame it on exhaustion, he stood from the bench and walked toward the fountain. A small weight held him back, though, and looking down he felt a sense of déjà vu. "Chibi-Chibi, right?"

Usagi's little sister gazed up at him through dewy eyes, small arms wrapped around his leg. "Chibi."

Disentangling small limbs from his, he knelt down. "What are you doing out here again?"

The little girl continued to merely look at him with a wide smile that refused to leave her face. Endymion felt some of his tension melt away enough to allow a small smile in return.

Once again, he found himself with an armful of child. Chibi-Chibi sighed in a way that could only be described as content. Accepting the fact that should he pull away now it would invite tears, Endymion stood with the girl in his arms to survey the crowd. If the youngest Tsukino was here, then there was a great possibility that the eldest was not too far away.

"Chibi-Chibi!" Her breathless voice came from behind him.

Starting, Endymion turned to face the girl he had tried to simultaneously avoid and keep a close eye on. "You keep losing your sister."

Usagi graced him with a wrinkled nose and a raspberry. "Is it my fault she keeps running off like this? I blame you, you know."

"Me?" His eyebrow rose at the accusation. "How is this my fault?"

"Because you're the one she keeps going to! So it's your fault for having some kind of kid attractor on you."

He had to snort at the absurd accusation. "You think I would go around with something to attract _children?"_ What kind of pervert did she think he was? "So is that why you're here, then?"

Usagi fumed as she fumbled inside the bag she carried. "Of course not! I wouldn't be attracted to you even if you wore cologne that smelled like cake and bathed in sugar! And here's your valentine chocolate! I hope you choke! But not really!"

Endymion surprised himself as he felt a smile, broad and genuine, at her words. He accepted the small package, brightly colored and expertly wrapped, perhaps by her mother. She was so infallibly _Usako_ at that moment that he had no choice but to feel this brief glimmer of joy, and he was going to cling to that feeling for as long as humanly possible.

She started, giving him an unreadable look as she stared at him for a moment.

"What?" Despite her sudden close appraisal of him, he clung to this feeling that he had not felt in far too many days.

Her silence stretched for a couple of seconds before she shook herself. Gone was the inscrutable expression, to be replaced by a smile he could tell was not genuine. "Nothing, you just looked familiar for a second."

He opened his mouth to say something, anything. On this day of days, he wanted her to know that she was not alone, that he was _there, with_ her. In this moment he felt a weakness he had not in centuries and a desire to make things right in this instant. To do so, though, would do more harm than good. He knew, had seen her reaction to him before, had felt her emotional evisceration. To do that again was unacceptable no matter how much he wished to comfort her.

Before his resolution could waver, there was a scream in the distance that broke into an eruption of pandemonium. Usagi's eyes widened.

"Could you do me a favor? Just keep an eye on her for a few minutes?" She was already heading in the direction of the chaos, not giving him a moment to refuse. "I forgot something, and I just need to take care of it. Thanks!"

Endymion watched as her hair streamed behind her in the chilled wind. He exchanged a momentary glance with Chibi-Chibi before whispering to the spot Usagi had vacated. "Be careful."

xoxoxox

"Come on. On _Valentine's_ Day?" Usagi grumbled as she ran toward the commotion, pulling her broach from her pocket as she went. She glanced around to make sure no one was around before transforming, avoiding twigs and branches as she went. It confused her, as the past week had been relatively quiet. There had been no attacks, no need to transform. Why all of a sudden? Or had the attacks been going on, just not to where she was aware of them? This last thought caused a shiver to lance up her spine.

Reaching the clearing she saw Sailor Aluminum Seiren and Sailor Lead Crow clucking their tongues over a blackening star seed. "Stop right there!"

As she was delivering her speech, Lead Crow stood up, dusting her hands on her pants. Aluminum Seiren held the seed in her hand, unsure of what to do. "This isn't what we're looking for. I do apologize for the mess!"

"Give that back!" Sailor Moon stepped forward, preparing to attack if necessary. She did not get the chance.

"World Shaking!" A yellow orb of energy hurtled over the ground, which shook with the force of the momentum. Sailor Moon barely managed to keep her footing as the orb knocked into the turncoat sailor senshi, throwing the ebony seed beyond their reach.

Lead Crow gave a derisive snort as the phone booth appeared behind them. "That's our cue to skidaddle. Come on, Aluminum Seiren."

"Yes, have a nice day!"

Sailor Moon took a step forward, hand outreached. "Wait!" It was too late, the enemy was gone. She had wanted to know _why_, why they were fighting, and what she could do to help them stop. They were, after all, senshi just as she was.

"Sailor Moon, watch it!" Uranus landed beside the shorter girl, eye on the shifting figure on the ground. Sailor Moon had a vague sense of recognition before the person stood.

"Uranus, what are you doing here?"

"We were in the area when we heard the scream." Neptune landed gracefully beside her partner, hair fluttering gently in the breeze.

What had once been human turned into a twisted shadow of itself. The phage towered over the running people, and it wasn't until he roared his name that Sailor Moon realized who he was.

"That's my homeroom teacher!"

"I knew that man was no good!" Venus, followed by the remaining three inner senshi, arrived to flank Sailor Moon and the out outer senshi. Mars and Jupiter took their place in the front while Mercury took a few steps back, inputting data into her computer.

"Sailor Homeroom!" The phage launched his offensive strike, a barrage of oversized red pens. They struck the earth, capped tips vibrating with their force.

"That's dangerous!" Sailor Moon lamented.

"And you failed your test!" Sailor Homeroom launched several oversized sheets of paper her way, red marks all over. She was bumped out of the way by Uranus, who got nicked in the arm by the edge of the sheet.

"Uranus!" Sailor Moon knelt down as Mars and Jupiter combined their attacks.

"Keep focused, Sailor Moon, it's just a paper cut!" Uranus reprimanded just as Sailor Moon was called to finish off the attack.

"Right!" Gulping, Sailor Moon turned toward her homeroom teacher. She spun, rod turning in nimble spins between her fingers, before the power welled up for her healing wave. Her teacher slumped to the ground as Venus retrieved the star seed.

Lingering back, Sailor Moon hid in the crowd of girls as her teacher woke. He was not her favorite teacher, but she could not bring herself to leave until she was certain he was okay.

xoxoxox

Endymion clutched the earth as pain shot through his chest. Every cell in his body was screaming at him to go to her, to keep her safe. Perspiration lined his brow as he struggled against his transformation. A soft whimpering beside him kept him grounded and conscious as Chibi-Chibi was forced to watch his struggle.

Finally, after an eternal battle against himself, he felt her detransform. Relief washed through him as he collapsed to the ground, gasping against the damp soil.

He had felt this once before, albeit too brief a time to realize what it was he was trying to stop. Then, Usagi had made quick work of her enemy and it was over and done with in less than two minutes. Now, it had lasted an eternity and he recognized it for something he had not felt in centuries. He had forgotten how much it hurt to fight against the pull.

Tiny hands patted his shoulder as the whimpers grew steadily louder. After a moment of relishing in the sudden relief from pain, he rolled on his side and looked up at the small child. "I'm sorry. Did I worry you? I'm fine."

Chibi-Chibi patted his face, lower lip stuck out and quivering. "Fine?"

"Yes. All better." Truth was, despite the relief, it still felt as though he had just went up against a bulldozer and lost.

"Lie," she accused with unreadable eyes as her small mouth firmed. The look was too old for a face so young.

"Yes. But it won't be soon, I promise."

"Promise?" She was a small child once again, looking to him for reassurance on the frightening realities of life.

"Promise. Come on, let's go find that sister of yours."

_Yay! Now I can say that the ending of chapter six wasn't an accident! Woooot!_


	9. The Descent

**Rating:** PG-13

**Disclaimer: **I don't own them. If I did, there would have been even more angst in Sailor Stars.

**Summary:** In the attempt to save the royal family from temporal disaster, Pluto succeeds in saving only one. The only time they can go is a time where neither exists, a young girl hurts, and the ability to fix things is still within reach.

**AN:** I'm so sorry for the lateness of this. First, I got swamped with school. Then I got sick. Then I sprained my back. Then I had to go back and reread stuff to remember where I was going. Fun all around! (Fortunately, I had bits and pieces outlined, so it wasn't that hard.) I'm posting this now because there's a storm coming! Otherwise I would double check it over. Still unbetad, but thanks to **Antigone2** for assuring me that the snip I sent her wasn't crap and for answering my pestery questions.

**Chapter Nine – **The Descent

* * *

><p>"Twice in one day, they're really getting persistent." Mars ducked as the latest phage volleyed an attack of sequins and glitter. Some sparkling shrapnel sliced her skirt, indicating her reflexes were slow. With a growl and a curse, she pulled back and shot a flaming arrow in their enemy's direction. "Where's Sailor Moon?"<p>

"Detention," Jupiter ground out, rubbing her eyes clear of scented powder.

_Curse that girl,_ Mars thought. "She better get here fast, this guy's annoying!"

"Aren't they all?"

"Yeah, yeah."

Mars countered the attacks sent her way, finding a groove where she could nearly anticipate the enemy's next move. Though taxing, this enemy was not as erratic as the previous. Then, she had to keep on her toes. Now, she merely sidestepped this attack or leaped away from that attack. It was almost tedious.

And when their leader got there, Mars would give that girl such a tongue lashing. While having always been on the far side of a klutz, lately Usagi had been distant, as well. She was hiding something big, Mars knew it, and perhaps while she was giving her friend a lecture she could throttle the truth out of her and _demand_ that her role as friend be taken seriously. Whatever Usagi was hiding, it was something that she would not share, did not trust any of them enough to do so, and that stung.

"Why do they always attack near _your_ school, anyway? Why never mine?"

"Sorry I'm late!" Mars fought down the grin as she heard the familiar voice.

"It's about time!"

xoxoxox

School had been out for an hour when Endymion felt it again for the second time that day. The pain, though not the first of its kind, seared through his system as though he had never felt it before. His body screamed out at him to go to her, to help fight. It took him by such surprise that he was almost halfway through the transformation before he caught himself. He forced it back, holding that part so tightly within himself that the pain doubled. Then it was over, and he found he was crossing the street back at school. He must have wandered toward her, body wanting to go to her though his mind refused.

There was a clash above, and looking up he saw a battle unfolding on the school roof. Jupiter and Mars were fighting, and Sailor Moon arrived just in time to finish the enemy off.

He stared up, still dazed by the previous assault to his senses and awestruck at the sight before him. It was not until he heard the shrieks of rubber against asphalt and the girls around him that he remembered he had paused in the middle of the street. Endymion had barely a moment to look up when the front bumper of the car rammed into his side. Though it had slowed to the point where the impact was not hard enough to cause serious injury, it still sent him sprawling on loose rock and gravel. The air left his lungs as his back impacted the ground and the world swirled has his skull struck hard.

The last thing he saw before the world slipped black was Sailor Moon hovering over him, crying out a name. The wrong name, yet his.

xoxoxox

Ikuko has not seen her daughter cry so much, true and actual tears and not the crocodile sobs the young blond was known for, in a situation that did not involve the mysterious Chiba Mamoru. When he broke up with her, she was inconsolable. When he left, she was devastated. She still was, and though the young girl tried to hide it, Ikuko knew that the separation had been less than easy on her teenage daughter. However, over the past few days, her young daughter cried more than she didn't over the new boy in school, who had been sent to the hospital with a minor concussion.

Her initial reaction to hearing that her little girl had witnessed something so frightening was to lock the teenager away to make sure she never had to see anything like that again. After all, her daughter, despite being sixteen, was still all stuffed bunnies and fuzzy pajamas. Usagi should not have to witness the horrors of the world, not _ever_.

"He's going to be okay, Usagi. The doctors even told Setsuna that he was very lucky." Despite her tone, Ikuko still stroked her daughter's hair as she emptied the waste basket full of used tissue and crumpled paper.

Instead of answering, Usagi whimpered and rolled over, back to the rest of the room.

With a sigh, the matriarch of the Tsukino household left the room with the small trash bag in hand.

The doorbell rang as she descended the steps. Calling out for the visitor to come in, the door opened to reveal the young Miss Kaioh framed by the glittering afternoon sun. It was not the first time that the elegant teenager had stopped by. Ikuko would question why someone as polar opposite as her daughter would consider being friends with someone so much younger, at least emotionally, but then that was what Usagi seemed to do best. She drew people in despite themselves and pulled them out of their shell. Seeing this young woman before her, she could only guess how much she had blossomed just by knowing her daughter.

"She's upstairs, still the same as before. Will you be staying for dinner?"

"No, but thank you, Mrs. Tsukino." After slipping in some house shoes, the willowy girl glided up the stairs and disappeared from view.

xoxoxox

"I'm fine, can I leave now?" Endymion asked for the fortieth time that day. He hated hospitals, despite his early ambitions of becoming a doctor. He had spent a lifetime in that profession, and would rather not repeat it any time soon.

"Just a few more hours of observation left," the nurse said in a bored tone, having repeated the same thing forty times. "The swelling has gone down, just want to make sure there's no lasting damage."

"But the sooner I get out of here, the sooner I'm out of your hair," he pointed out.

"Darlin', if only it were up to me." She grumbled more under her breath as she left the room.

He should have been out the first day, but scans revealed some anomalies that the doctors were still puzzling over. Nothing that would cause a freak out in the medicinal world, but enough of a puzzlement to where extra precautions were put in place.

"Are you harassing the poor nurse again?" Haruka entered the room without so much as a knock and took a seat beside the bed. She slumped down in the seat, one foot propped on the edge of his mattress, as she fiddled with her nails. "You know you're the reason why women like the nurse in _Misery_ exist, right?"

"We have a love hate thing going on, here." He resisted the urge to push her foot away. "You come to spring me?"

Haruka snorted. "Unlikely. It's my turn in the rotation to keep an eye on you. Michiru's gone to see how the kitten's doing."

Endymion shifted, the bruise on his side pulling. "How is she?"

"Still pretty messed up by the whole thing. She saw it happen, after all."

Endymion sighed. It was one thing to be hit, yet another entirely to know that it had been seen. He wasn't sure which hurt more; the accident or the knowledge that she had seen it.

"Don't worry, we've been trying to keep her distracted. Her mother's pretty concerned, though. According to Setsuna, the only time Usagi cries like this is over…well, _you._"

"Can I just sleep until it's time to leave?" A throbbing, which started at the base of his skull, now worked its way to his temples in a migraine. "And ask for some aspirin or something, would you?"

His mattress jostled beneath the movement of her foot, sending a wave of nausea through his stomach. He could feel the empty air when the woman left the room.

xoxoxox

Michiru stood in the doorway before fully entering the room. Had Haruka been there, she would have said something about there having been enough tears, using a gruff exterior to hide the fact that the princess' genuine tears caused them all pain. Had Rei been there, the miko would have done everything in her power to argue Usagi out of her mood. The others may have used baked goods as a means to bribe a smile out of the young girl. Had this been any other time, under any other circumstance, Michiru may have tried the latter herself. However, she knew that there was more to this than a boy getting hit by the car. A catalyst had been broken, and Usagi was crying for more than what she knew. She feared it would trigger something, and it had been for that reason why the three of them had been checking up on the young girl.

"Usagi?" Her only answer was a noise, half whine and part whimper.

On quiet feet, Michiru navigated around the low table where homework and papers lay strewn across the surface. Many letters to Mamoru were half written, some with so many erase marks that the paper tore.

She sat on the edge of the bed, swinging her legs up to curl behind the girl. "You're okay," she whispered. Not that Usagi had no reason to cry, or that everything was really fine. Instead, she meant it was okay for the young girl to cry. She couldn't do much, but she could do this. And she would be there for as long as Usagi needed her to be.

xoxoxox

The phone call had come to the Tsukino residence not long after Usagi had drifted into an uneasy slumber. She could not recall her dream exactly, but she knew it had not been pleasant. Michiru waking her and the subsequent phone call had been a blessing. Now here she was, just outside the hospital and waiting for a certain boy to show his face.

After several circuits of pacing between pillars, and many false starts as someone else exited the building, the door slid open to reveal a surly youth giving an evil eye to a nurse behind him. Aside from the bandage she could see peeking out of his shirt from where the gravel had scraped him and the mottled coloring of skin poking out between his trousers and shirt, he appeared fine and in one piece. Usagi barely remembered to keep her enthusiasm in check as she barreled into him, restraining her eager limbs from crushing his ribcage.

She may not been as gentle as she would have liked, with the grunt he made and the stagger in his step, but he kept his balance like a pro.

"I'm fine, Tsukino," he said with a gentle tug on her hair. "I've _been_ fine."

"Yeah, but I was _there!_ I saw it _happen!_" She had been up on the roof and had caught him from the corner of her eye and turned to look just as the car came screeching to a halt. It was not until she was on her way down to him that she realized the shriek she had heard was her own. "Are you _sure_ you're okay? What if you have amnesia?"

"I just said your name, didn't I?"

"Well, true, but still! You never know! My boyfriend got it all the time!" He made a strange noise in the back of his throat. "Well, not all the time. But it was more than once."

"Look, I promise I'm fine. They wouldn't have let me go otherwise."

"Okay, you two," Haruka said, coming to stop beside the pair. She tugged Usagi away from the recovering boy. "Setsuna's expecting me to get this one back before he suffers a relapse."

"A relapse? A relapse from what? You said you were fine!"

"The only thing I'm in danger of a relapse from is a migraine." Minori stalked toward the parking lot, leaving the two girls behind.

"Is he really okay, Haruka?" Though he had said he was, Usagi couldn't bring herself to believe it.

"He's as fine as he was before the accident, Kitten." The older girl looped an arm around Usagi's shoulders, pulling her close. "You want to come back with us? See for yourself?"

Usagi thought for a moment before nodding. It would be good to see with her own eyes. That and she never did see where the boy lived before.

xoxoxox

Time moved slowly forward, and as it did, Endymion wondered if perhaps there had been more damage in the car accident than previously believed.

It started out with the small things. It took him longer to remember names of places Endymion had visited and people he had known. Soon, it escalated to where large chunks of his own memory were missing, all from the past and future, and he was afraid that all that would be left was barely the here and now.

Why did Mamoru find so much peace staring at the moon? Why did he wake up at night, screaming, only to remember vague details about a child disappearing and a woman turning to ash when he woke up? Endymion had tried to ask Setsuna once, about why and what he couldn't remember, but the older lady had just stared at him with eyes so sad that it nearly choked him. Afterward, Mamoru tried to pretend everything was okay, that nothing was wrong. He was just a normal boy, going to a normal school, with normal friends, who couldn't remember why waking up alone made his soul ache.

So he pushed it away, trying not to be afraid that one day he would wake up and not know who he was, that everything would be lost to him. He could do it, for the most part.

When he was at school, he could almost _forget_that he was forgetting. He would work on his schoolwork, help his desk mate if she needed it. She needed it a lot, something that he didn't particularly mind. He would explain things to her, more than once if needed, but the sudden realization when she got something, the way her face lit up, made any annoyance he felt drift away.

It wasn't until he tried showing her a trick, something that he had been doing not five minutes ago, that the panic started to set in. Everything was fine, he could do it without the trick, but it was not knowing how he had been working on them until now that sent him leaping from his chair in a panic.

"Minori, what's wrong?"

The name, _his _name, was barely unrecognizable coming from her. It didn't fit, it wasn't _right!_ Terror clawed up his throat as he jabbed his finger against their workbooks. "This isn't right! I should _know_ this! I learned it... I learned it in..." His tongue froze on the word that refused to come out. _College?_

What was happening to him?

He stared at Usagi, wondering if she would be the next to go from his memory.

The young boy could hear the teacher come toward him, could sense the other eyes on the room on him. His breath caught in his throat in gasps, and there wasn't any room.

He vaguely felt brushes and harsh jolts as he ran out of the room, down the hall, toward anywhere but that room where nothing made sense.

The roof was void of any other human life, the perfect haven for his breakdown. The cold brick wall that he leaned against was harsh and unforgiving, scraping at his palms as his stomach churned with the dry heaves that resulted in nothing other than aching ribs and a vile taste in the back of his throat.

The door creaked open, ancient hinges protesting at the use, and the boy knew who it would be without looking.

"Minori?"

"_Don't _call _me that!_" The shriek surprised them both.

"What _should_I call you, then?"

Names coated his tongue, swirling both with myth and impossibility. The identities were just out of his reach, taunting him. "I- I don't know."

"What's wrong? Please tell me?"

"I don't _remember."_Before she could say anything, he continued, cutting her off. "Everything's slipping away, leaving me with nothing, and I can't even remember why I came here or what it is I need to be doing. Nothing makes sense, everything's a jumble, and all of these memories are just flying away and the harder I try to hold on, the faster they go, and I'm so afraid that the next thing I'll forget is you."

"What is it about _you_ that's so _special?_" His words were loud and desperate as his fists balled at his sides. "Why is the thought of forgetting _you_ more terrifying than forgetting everything else? Why do I keep thinking that as long as I know who you are, everything would just be okay? Why do I... Why can't I just... You're practically married! You write that guy of yours every day in class, I _watch _you do it! I just don't get _why!_"

Usagi's eyes were wide and glistening, and in the clear afternoon breeze, he found her beautiful.

Voice small, cracking, and desperate, he nearly choked on his plea. "Don't let me forget you. Please?"

The forceful impact of her body against his rocked him back on his feet, and her small arms were strong around him.

"My name is Tsukino Usagi," she began, softly, and his fists clutched tightly at the fabric of her school uniform. "I'm sixteen years old, and I'll tell you about myself every day if you want."

xoxoxox

It was the hardest fight yet. The phage was stubborn, unwilling to yield to her attack. Sailor Moon was grateful for the help when it arrived, even if it arrived in the form of the foreign senshi.

When Pluto came, Sailor Moon already had many cuts she'd be crying about later. Starfighter had tried to call out a warning to her, but her movements had been too late and too slow.

It probably was not the difficulty of the phage that made Sailor Moon slow. She had been getting very little sleep at night, plagued by unknown nightmares then struggling through thoughts for a friend slowly losing his mind. Since the incident on the roof, Minori rarely came to school. And when he did he would sometimes look _through_ her, as though he had no idea not only who she was, but anything else. Then, when she would tell him her name, his face would clear for a moment before something else caused another blank stare.

Finally, the others were able to distract the phage long enough for her to get in her cleansing attack. Once the phage turned back to human, Sailor Moon ran from the small clearing.

Thankfully, she was out of sight of the others when she finally collapsed. She barely had the piece of mind to detransform before losing consciousness.

xoxoxox

Things no longer made sense. He knew who he was, but didn't. He merely existed in a state of eternal confusion, only able to know who he was in a single moment with rarely any cognitive thought for the time around.

He was in a park, sitting on a bench overlooking the lake. Were there pleasant memories here of a young couple arguing over a cat? Were any memories of his tied in this spot? Endymion was not sure what brought him to this exact spot. One moment he had been wandering aimlessly through the park, looking at trees and children playing. The next, a pain coursed through his system. The only thing he knew was to keep whatever wanted to come out locked tight within his chest. He did not know how he knew this, just that it was important to do so. When it had passed, he'd found himself here.

The pain was still there, but it was easier to breathe. Then it left as suddenly as it came, but instead of relief he felt only a panic. Leaving the bench, he ran toward an unknown destination. It was there, in a clearing in a copse of wood, that he saw _her._ Memory was leaving him, but her name stood out in sudden clarity.

_Starfighter._

The sight of Starfighter standing over the prone Usagi – why could he still remember her when nothing else existed? - was too much for Endymion to bear. This woman had been there the day his wife died, and now she was here in a time she should not have been.

"_You!" _With all the strength in his young arms, Endyimion shoved the tall woman against the wall. It was only Starfighter's shock that allowed him to do so, but he was too far gone in his rage to feel the insult. "You were there. What did you do? What did you do to them?"

"What are you talking about?" The woman flashed a familiar scowl as she pushed him away. "I don't know you, kid. Never seen you before now."

There was a brief flash of something, a nervous tick of the eye down to the right, a tightening of the lips that fueled Endymion's hormone driven rage. "You're _lying._ You were there, I saw you! With your fellow senshi and your _princess._ You came for peace, and left with death. What did you do? _Why?"_ He shook the woman again, slamming her against the wall as his face scrunched up. "_They were my family!"_

The pain lanced through his mind, what was left of it, and he knew that he did not have long to take revenge for his wife and daughter. Soon, he would forget everything, and he would not even have this fragmented reality. The bits and pieces that were sewn together in a patchwork quilt through his mind would further disintegrate until there was nothing left for him to avenge.

"I will kill you," he vowed, glowering up through blurred vision. If it was the last thing he did, he would-

"You must stop this, my king." Another woman - Pluto, he vaguely recalled her name to be - came within his vision by his side. "I assure you, they had no part in the death of your family."

Endymion looked up at the other woman, mind struggling to make sense of what she said. "But...I _saw_ them. They were _there._"

"Yes, they were, but had no part in it. They were lost as well." Unlike Starfighter, Pluto wore the clothes of the people, simple and efficient. "And I have seen this woman recently in battle. I assure you, she has only tried to protect her."

He wanted to believe her words, for he did not think he was a violent man especially toward women, but this person _had_ been there. It could _not_ be just mere coincidence. "How do I know I can trust you?"

Pluto, stricken, stared at the young boy for a long moment. "Because, my king, I have been with you since the beginning of this."

Struggling, he thought back. Bare wisps of memory filtered through the diminishing light and he saw her, in a kitchen scrubbing, as he stared at a folder. With a sharp shake of his head, he nodded. "I know you. I..."

He felt something in his hands. Glancing up at his grip, he saw a familiar woman. He briefly wondered why he was holding on to her so tightly. "I know you." His family. He wanted something for his family. And this woman knew the girl who would be queen. "You have to protect her, keep her safe. I can't...it's becoming lost and nothing makes sense. But look after her!"

"What the hell are you talking about, all of a sudden? One minute you want to kill me, the next you want me to look after someone! Who? And who the hell are you?" The woman, her name was Starfighter, wasn't it? She demanded answers from himself and Pluto - he knew her - yet he could not keep his thoughts in order. Where were they going?

"She...so many names. I don't know what to call her now." What did he call her? Usako? Sailor Moon? Princess? Queen? So many names, so many titles, he could not keep track of all of them. He knew only one thing at that moment, as everything drifted away. A sharp pain in his chest, nestled between his lungs, caused his spine to bow as he clung to Starfighter. The blur in his vision increased, yet nothing fell. There was only one thing he wanted, just one, but he knew he could not have it. All he could do, he knew, was to plead with ghosts. "Please. Serenity. I want to see you." Just one more time.

Strong, delicate hands pulled him away from the alien senshi. "I beg your forgiveness for Lord Endymion. He is not well." Endymion? Who was that?

Struggling not to cry and not knowing why, Minori was led away from a strange lady wearing almost nothing.

**-**_**end Chapter Nine**_


	10. At the Beginning

**Rating:** PG-13

**Disclaimer: **I don't own them. If I did, there would have been even more angst in Sailor Stars.

**Summary:** In the attempt to save the royal family from temporal disaster, Pluto succeeds in saving only one. The only time they can go is a time where neither exists, a young girl hurts, and the ability to fix things is still within reach.

**AN:** I have the next chapter written, but I'm gonna wait probably until Friday to post that one. Why? Because I'm _evil!I _Muahahaha! No, because twelve is giving me some serious issues, and I want time to get it situated. Also, I want the time while the school semester has just started to get written what I can. I have creative writing, a documentary to make, an internship, and a graphics heavy course all this semester. I'll be lucky to have time to breathe once things get going. And also, **Antigone2** is either gonna kill me or something with all hemming and hawing I've done over, well, _everything._ She deserves an award.

**Chapter 10 – **_At the Beginning_

"Now wait just a damn minute!" Starfighter was not a patient being. All her life, she wanted things done now, and she wanted answers right away. It was known throughout her lady's kingdom that one did not make Starfighter wait for anything if it could be helped. Her tempers were notorious, and at times, her tantrums infamous.

She wanted this war to have been over with yesterday, and his princess found five minutes ago. She wanted a certain odangoed one to forget her boyfriend and move on _now._ So when her rival in romance, or at least the only tangible one, threatened to end her life, she wanted to know why. Immediately.

"Hey you, with the weird bow tie." Catching up to the strange woman and the tiny brat, she stopped their escape with a firm grip on a slender forearm. "Just what is going _on_ here? He's just a ninth grader, and a pathetically small one at that."

Affronted, the other woman stood to her full height. The imperious gaze caused Starfighter to almost take a step back, and would have had she not seen the same look in the mirror countless times. "He is here for the same reason you are."

It was no question what that was. "But what can he expect to do? He's ten."

"He is my _king,_ and I will not hear anyone disrespect him," she snapped. Then she sighed. "There is not much he _can_ do. He lost his queen and princess both, and was forced to watch as it happened, and we are here to make sure it does not happen again."

Starfighter eyed Minori. A king? Him? Still, the connotations were clear. This young boy clearly witnessed the death of his family, no matter how absurd the thought was. She knew the pain that losing one's princess was. But when that princess was one's own daughter, how did one survive it?

"He is older than he looks. So much older. But he cannot be here as he was, and his mind pays for it." The woman picked the now slumbering boy up, holding him as though he weighed no more than a sack of flour.

"Let me get this straight. You came here to protect his daughter in the present?"

"Oh, no. Technically his daughter never existed. His queen _is_ his princess." The following words were carefully constructed half-truths, Seiya could tell. She knew enough of royal politics to know that it was never wise to reveal too much. What Seiya did find out was enough to know that Minori, that frustrating boy who sat like stone beside Usagi in school, was on a mission almost as important as her own. Identities were carefully hidden, but she knew that whoever he was in the present was no longer.

When the woman who introduced herself as Setsuna finished, Seiya found herself with more questions than answers. "Why are you telling me this? Why don't you just go to your princess, if you know where she is?"

"I tell you this because I have seen you. You have protected our princess without realizing it." Setsuna shifted beneath the weight of the boy. Part of Seiya was pleased that this other woman was not as strong as she seemed. "And it is because it would devastate our princess to know that _her_ version of my king is dead. It has already happened once."

Seiya mulled this over. Protected _their_ princess? How? "Look, I appreciate you filling me in on this, don't get me wrong, but don't expect me to drop the search of my own princess to protect yours. Because that ain't gonna happen, lady."

Setsuna's smile was annoyingly enigmatic. "Of course not. You wouldn't be senshi otherwise." She turned to walk away, but Seiya was not through talking.

"Then why tell me? And don't give me that line about my protecting your princess. I've protected no one since coming here."

"Were it up to me, I would not have told you anything. However, you have seen my king at his weakest and I merely took advantage of an otherwise precarious situation." A hard glint stole across the taller woman's eyes. "It should go without saying that this information is not for the ears of your compatriots. While I cannot stop you from telling them, it is _you_ amongst your group that I have told."

Seiya snorted. "I won't outright tell them, but if it comes down to it I won't lie, either." She was bad at it, anyway. The problem with having such a volatile personality was that there was no time to think about hiding emotions. She thought, she felt, she acted.

"I suppose that will do." She paused then, giving Seiya a once over. "I don't suppose I need to tell you that should it turn out you are the enemy, I will stop at nothing to bring you down before you so much as touch a hair on my lady's head."

Seiya smirked. If she had not been suspicious before, now they were confirmed. "Of course not. You wouldn't be senshi otherwise."

xoxoxox

Though they were in the main house, and Endymion slept soundly in the guest house, the three outer senshi spoke in hushed tones.

"Was it the accident, you think?" Michiru asked, voice barely above a whisper.

"I don't know. I don't _think_ so. He was having lapses beforehand." Setsuna poured each of them a cup of tea, taking a moment to blow the steam rising from the rim. "It could just be coincidence that the memories left after it, or perhaps the injuries he sustained aggravated the situation."

"Either way, what are we supposed to do now? Why haven't we told him anything? Are we going to keep him in the dark on who he is?" Haruka sipped her oolong.

"That may be for the best for now. At least until we know what is going on." Setsuna placed the pot back on the counter. "For now, the accident serves as a matter of convenience. When he questions his loss in memory, we can use that as an explanation."

Haruka snorted. "First we lie to Kitten about who he is, now we're lying to him about the same thing." She took a long sip of her tea. "This is one big convoluted mess we've found ourselves in."

"What mess?" The three looked up to see Endymion standing in the doorway, disheveled and still half asleep.

"How are you feeling?" Setsuna stood from the table and went to her young king, pressing her hand to his forehead.

"Don't know yet." The boy chewed on his lip. "I don't…remember a lot of things."

"Well, what do you remember?"

His brow furrowed together as he concentrated. "My name is Shinji Minori. I'm sixteen years old. I live with Setsuna, Haruka is my cousin. I sit next to Tsukino Usagi in school." He shook his head. "There's other stuff, but they're small. Why can't I remember?"

"We're not sure, exactly. What do you remember of your family?"

"I remember…pink hair and-" He gave a violent shake of his head, taking a step back. "I don't want to think of them." His breathing came hard and fast as his eyes darted around the room. "Why don't I remember anything?"

Setsuna pulled the boy into her arms. "You suffered a great trauma. First, you witness the death of your family. Do you remember this?" His head shook against her shoulder. "Then you hit your head. This is the best theory we have on your missing memories."

"How can you be so calm about this? I can't remember anything and you're just so…calm!"

"Do not mistake this for indifference. I must remain so for your sake." She gave the boy a momentary squeeze. "Do not think for a moment that this is not affecting me."

"I think a few more days off from school won't hurt," Haruka intoned. "Boy's been through enough the past week. Besides, it'd give him a chance to fix up your guest house."

Setsuna gave a warm smile as she pulled the boy away to look at him. He wiped his nose and avoided her gaze, focusing on a tile on the floor. "I think that sounds like a good idea. Some busy work to keep your mind off things."

He gave a sullen nod and Setsuna felt her heart crack. There was no sign of her king on the youthful face. Instead, all she could see was a terrified young boy.

xoxoxox

Minori knew he liked chocolate, knew he feared needles. He knew his favorite flower was the rose, and that forget-me-nots meant love. He knew the loneliness of having no family, and how to protect himself from this feeling. He _knew_ these things, and others, but didn't know _how_he knew them. The memories behind these bits of knowledge were gone, perhaps forever.

The girl beside him, Usagi, had kept a promise she had made to him. His first day back at school, she spent the day reminding him of who she was. Though details had been blurred, he never truly forgot her. Still, the reminder made him feel wanted.

Usagi had known him for only a short time before his memory had ebbed away. He had feared forgetting her, and while that fear still had a firm grasp on him during the sleepless night, he did not know _why_he was so terrified. What was it about her? Even when she was angry, there was this aura about her that sent his otherwise turbulent mind into a serene state.

He wondered if perhaps it was due to the clearest memory he had. It was vague, a bit fuzzy, and not altogether whole, but it was perhaps the only thing he remembered. A cold and sterile room. He was crying, and there was an intense longing for the fading ephemeral bond of a friend. Then there she was, a tiny girl years younger than him with short little pigtails and wide blue eyes. She had given him a rose and a smile and that was it.

He knew it could not have been Usagi who had given him the rose. It was a logical improbability, as the young child in his memory had been so much younger than he, and Usagi was older than him by little less than a year. Still, when he thought of the little girl who had given him a glimmer of happiness in an obvious bleak and uncaring environment, he couldn't help but also think of Usagi. The two were interconnected, if only through his own emotional attachment to them both.

"Minori?" The young boy blinked out of his thoughts to look at the girl his mind had been wondering about. "It's lunch time."

He looked around, and saw that the other students were speaking in small groups of friends, and he wondered how he hadn't noticed the constant thrum of voices.

"Leave him, Odango. I don't think he's very hungry anyway." The unwelcome voice sent the hair on the back of Minori's neck on end. Seiya smirked a cocky grin while towering over them both with an annoying advantage in height. "Are you, little miss?"

The inside of his cheek ached where he bit down. Taking a calming breath, he picked up his lunch. "Of course I am." He mentally applauded his ability to appear calm, even as he wished to strangle the young man beside them. "And even if I weren't, someone would need to play chaperone."

Seiya's answering scowl sated Minori's desire to fight, even if that satisfaction was only a momentary thing. Under normal circumstances, the boy knew he probably would find the other man to be an interesting person. He would even probably find some of the more grating personality traits amusing. However, the idol's painfully obvious crush on Usagi was nearly enough for Minori to lose his composure. In all actuality, if Seiya just had the crush, Minori wouldn't really care. In fact, he wouldn't blame him for it. What annoyed him beyond all measure were the times when he subjected Usagi to the crush, as though loudly begging the young girl to accept and return the one-sided feelings.

"So, ah, lunch. This way. To where we eat." Usagi gestured toward the door, aware of the tense atmosphere between her two friends.

With a much more pleasant countenance, Minori smiled at the girl. "Of course. The roof, or the tree this time?"

"I was thinking of the other place! You know, near the wall? If that's okay with you two."

Shrugging, not really caring where they ate so long as they did, Minori followed Usagi. He was unsure whether or not to be annoyed when Seiya fell in step beside him, allowing to blonde to walk a few paces in front of them.

"You know I'm not the only one here who likes her." Seiya's voice, though a whisper, felt as though it grew louder with each word until it echoed on the walls around them.

The thinly veiled accusation caused Minori's steps to falter, and he felt blood heat his cheeks. Fortunately Usagi appeared to not have heard what the idol had said. "I-I do not! She's _Usagi!_ She has a boyfriend! Something you always seem so intent on forgetting!"

"Please, if you ask me, he's probably off having a little fun, completely forgetting he has Usagi back home."

"That's not true, he wouldn't!" Minori didn't know why he was so sure of this, but he was. Perhaps he had heard enough from his cousin to glean the very important fact that Mamoru felt very strongly for Usagi.

"How can you be so sure? You've _heard_ of these Americans he's surrounded by, right? I hear the college types are even more..." At this, Seiya's eyes darted up and down the hallway before leaning close, as though he were about to say a word that was taboo. "_American_."

"Because! He would be incredibly stupid to do that! Why would he risk what he has with her with someone where things couldn't work out? It would be unthinkable!"

"So you _do_ like her." Seiya was pleased with his observation, smirking as he shoved his hands in his pockets. This his eyes turned serious. "Just be careful. You may have some little princess tucked aside that you're not aware of. Don't allow your loyalties to be clouded."

Minori, beyond flustered and confused by what those last words meant, could only splutter denials. After a moment, he sought refuge in the relative safety zone of Usagi's hearing range.

Xoxoxox

Usagi sighed as she had yet another hour of detention. It was for the same thing as always; writing too much to her boyfriend and not enough on her homework. It wasn't fair. Study hall should be about doing what you wanted to do, not doing homework, which according to the word, is meant to be done at home.

Minori had even slept through the class right beside her. All he got was a reprimand to not do it again. Just because _his_ homework was already done meant he didn't get in as much trouble. She could not be mad at him, though. Lunch had been nice, and he and Seiya had been relatively civil to one another. The girls had had duties to perform over lunch, so it was just the three of them. It went well, she thought. Very little food flinging.

Eagerly, she checked the clock. Surely time had just slipped away while she sat there reminiscing over the day's activities. She deflated a little when she realized she was only ten minutes in to her detention. Why did it always feel time was sucked in a vacuum during boring and tedious moments?

A scream tore through her concentration. Head jerking up, she rushed to the window to see what was happening.

"Stay here, Tsukino," her teacher said as he left, undoubtedly off to call the police. Not that they could help, as she saw two familiar figures looming over a prone body.

Jerking into action, Usagi raced down the hallway. It was clear of people, having been emptied an hour before. She transformed on the run, not wanting to waste a moment.

Arriving in the clearing just outside school, she saw Sailors Aluminum Seirin and Lead Crow above a familiar boy.

This time, it was Minori being attacked.

Fear crushed her throat as she darted forward.

xoxoxox

He had intended to wait for her, to walk her home, to keep her safe. Now it looked as though none of those would be happening.

The pain tearing through Minori's chest was incredible, paralyzing him in place. He could do nothing but stare up at what Sailor Lead Crow was after. This was it? This degraded bauble was what everyone was after?

"Oh, that's rather quite..." Sailor Aluminum Seirin drifted off, trying to find the right word for what she was looking at.

"Disgusting? Eroded? Damaged?" Her partner sneered as she took in their prize.

"Oh my, no! I was trying to go for something less insulting, something more like... antediluvian."

"How do you even _know_ that word?" Sailor Lead Crow shook her head. "Anyway, we can't take _that_thing back to Galaxia. It looks like it's about to fall apart at any moment!"

"But it would be so rude of us to not take it. After all, he was quite accommodating."

"Hold it right there!" The new voice broke through, yet all Minori could do was shift his eyes toward the source. Sailor Moon stood on a nearby post, hands on her hips, preparing for battle.

"Don't worry about it, we're not going to be taking _that_with us. Come on, Aluminum."

The blue girl serenely walked over to Minori, slipping something in his pocket. "Thank you very much for your time, but I'm afraid we cannot accept your offer. Please take my card, though, and have an excellent day!" Patting the pocket in place, she followed her partner into a narrow phone booth, and then they were gone.

"Minori?"

How did Sailor Moon know his name? Aside from what Haruka and Michiru told him, he was not one hundred percent sure that this girl was not an enemy as well. He was helpless, though, stuck as pain and exhaustion weighed him down.

"I know it looks pretty rough, but I'd appreciate it if you left it with me. I don't think I'm supposed to last long without it." His throat was dry as sandpaper, and forming words was physically painful.

"I'm not here to take it. I'm here to give it back." Sailor Moon's eyes were fixed on the bauble, wondering at the gold shine being smothered by the darker amber and bronze.

"Really? I'd appreciate it." He had no choice but to trust that she would not take it. He wanted to trust her, though. There was something nostalgic about her that many of the other senshi lacked.

There was spinning, and a wand, and he wondered if he could keep watching without becoming nauseous. Then the light was spreading over him, and with it a relief so intense that he had to close his eyes as he became whole again.

The grass was damp beneath his palms, and he could feel the chill seep through the knees of his trousers. He was dizzy and weak, and it felt as though he suffered from a fever.

"Is there anyone you want me to get for you?" Her voice was pensive, guarded, but he could not clear his mind enough to think of a reason why.

Minori thought, wondering who he could have her get. Haruka and Michiru were well on the other side of town. Setsuna was likely busy with work. The only one available that was nearby, and honestly the only one he could want to come at the moment, was up in the classroom serving her detention.

"Usagi... do you know her?" Sailor Moon blinked down at him. "She's upstairs right now, in detention. Could you get her?"

She nodded and stood up.

Still dizzy, Minori pulled himself to a nearby tree. He did what he had always been told to do, placing his head on his knees, but it just made it worse. So did laying down, but when he was on the ground, he could not bring himself to sit back up right away, and instead closed his eyes as he concentrated on the scent of grass.

His star seed really was as hideous as Lead Crow had claimed it to be, but it had also held an air of timelessness and grace. He wondered if perhaps this was not unlike the relics discovered in ancient tombs of kings and pharaohs. If his was the comparison for what was found today, could the others be indicative of what artifacts had once been in the past? A part of him did not think so. It felt more likely that his was something that had fallen in a vat of acid, and that what was once shiny and new was now pitted and dull.

What would cause something like that, though? Aside from the emptying void in his mind, which seemed to have slowed down to a mere trickle at that point, he was a perfectly _normal_teenage boy. If there were something else, something more, his cousin would let him know, of that he was certain.

The sound of footfalls on grass reached his ears, and when he opened his eyes, black loafers and white socks filled his vision.

"I don't see what the big fuss over those things is. Mine looks like a rusty old door knob."

The view shifted, and her concerned face reached his line of vision as she knelt before him. "Are you feeling any better?"

"Is it _bad_that I'm a bit mad mine isn't as pretty as everyone else's?"

"Oh, well, sometimes they come out all sparkling but turn to black. Yours never changed, did it?" She sat beside him, pulling him part way into her lap, his head resting against her abdomen.

"No. But then, I don't think it would matter much if it had. Those two didn't seem to want anything to do with it."

"Don't worry," she told him as she sifted her fingers through his hair, waiting for him to regain his strength. "I'm sure it's beautiful."

xoxoxox

"Remind me again why I should allow you to continue serving me," Galaxia sneered down at her latest two minions. The urge to steal their bracelets was great.

"The boy had a seed, but it was so old we didn't think it would serve your purposes." Aluminum Seirin shrugged while Crow gulped.

"I do not care how old it is. I want all of the star seeds. His did not change, so it is one I want! Do I make myself understood?"

The two gave a bow. "Yes, Galaxia." The two made their leave, leaving the older woman alone. She would get the seeds, then she would reform the galaxy in her image. No more hurt, no more pain, no more nothing.

Behind her, her meager collection of star seeds shone with the vibrant life of their planets. None glowed brighter than that of the angry golden seed belonging to the world she would soon overtake.

-End Chapter Ten


	11. The Things Dreams are Made Of

**Rating:** PG-13

**Disclaimer: **I don't own them. If I did, there would have been even more angst in Sailor Stars.

**Summary:** In the attempt to save the royal family from temporal disaster, Pluto succeeds in saving only one. The only time they can go is a time where neither exists, a young girl hurts, and the ability to fix things is still within reach.

**AN:** Was anyone else looking forward to this? I know I bounced around the room all excited when I woke up. Posting day! Thanks again to **Antigone2.** She suffered through many stressed out PMs and whatnot, and gave me the direction to go with this. Also, there be inner senshi afoot! (Someone asked about it a few reviews ago, and I figured now was the perfect time for me to stretch my wings and give those girls a go xD) So I think this may be the last filler chapter of the story.

**Chapter Eleven** – _The Things Dreams are Made Of_

Four girls huddled around a table in a small shrine. They leaned in close to one another, sharing secrets and information. Books lay on the surface, untouched, as even the most studious of them could not help but mull over today's topic of discussion.

"I don't know, there's just something about the kid I don't trust," Rei said, checking the corners of the room for any lurking pigtailed blonds. Usagi was late, leaving them perfect time to gossip.

"He's Haruka's cousin, Rei. _And _he's staying with Setsuna. How bad can he be?" Makoto retorted, eyeing her bag of goodies she had brought for the study session. Should she open them now and allow someone aside from Usagi to test her delicacies? Or forgo the wrath of trembling lips and tear filled eyes? Decision made, she shoved the bag back under the table.

"Be that as it may, there is something suspicious about him." Ami tapped her pen against the corner of a book. "Whether it is malicious or not, I cannot quite yet determine."

"The guy just got hit by a car, lost his family, and is new in town. Of course he's going to be less than normal," Makoto pointed out. Usually she would be right along with the others in their suspicions, especially with the frequency of new students turning out to be the enemy, but the kid had two things she could relate to. Though never having been hit by a car, she understood how confusing a time it could be when one had to move to a new school, and the loss of family that made it impossible to just smile for no reason.

"Still, there's something eerily familiar about him," Minako piped in. "And the way he looks at our Usagi sometimes? It's as though he knows things he shouldn't!"

Rei gasped. "You don't think he knows our secret, do you?"

"What?" Minako blinked in confusion for a moment before waving her hand. "Oh no, nothing like that! I just mean things like her hobbies, her favorite food, her bra size. Things only a creepy stalker would know."

"He's _not_ a creepy stalker!" Makoto could not believe where this conversation was going. All she had asked was whether anyone knew anything about the new guy.

Minako sighed. "I'm not saying he is! If he isn't, we'd want to know though. After all, 'Keep your friends close and your potential stalkers closer!' We owe it to Usagi to investigate any new comers, especially ones with obvious puppy crushes. With Mamoru being gone, who else is going to keep her safe from unwanted potential suitors? No matter how romantic it is to have guys vying for your attention! No, I say we investigate and let the boy down gently! For his sake, for Usagi's, but more importantly, for _Mamoru!_"

"For Mamoru!" the girls repeated in enthusiastic unison.

Makoto furrowed her brow in confusion. "Wait, since when did Minori have a crush on Usagi?"

Minako flipped her hair over her shoulder. "Since always."

"And how do you know?"

"I _am_ the sailor senshi of love! I know many things, my dear Makoto. Many things that would make your spine tingle and your toes curl with the deliciousness of it all!"

"Right." Makoto didn't want to know, she really didn't. Or maybe she did, just not now. "Well, now that it's decided one of us is going to check him out, who-"

"I volunteer!" Rei stood, knocking paper to the ground in her gusto. "I'll get that punk to admit everything!"

"Um, Rei, you don't even go to our school so he'll have no idea who you are," Makoto pointed out. "Besides, we don't want to scare him to death."

Mars sat with a huff. "Then who are we gonna send? Minako?"

"Oh, I can totally do it," the blond chirped. "I'm good at getting information people don't want to give!"

"That's settled. Minako goes, nobody gets hurt." Makoto, having seen the evil gleam in Rei's eyes, breathed a sigh of relief. Sure, the boy was suspicious, but that was no reason to completely scar him for life.

"Where's Minako going?" Usagi asked as she entered the room, rosy cheeked and out of breath.

"To the hardware store," Minako answered right away. At the raised eyebrows she received, she shrugged. "I need to pick up some supplies for the drama club."

Gathering her books, Minako stood up and waved at the girls. "Sorry for bailing so soon, but I completely forgot about it until just now!" She had a hug and a giggle for Usagi, and then she was gone in a flurry of dust.

Still catching her breath, Usagi sat down. "Sorry I'm late. Mama and Papa have a function to attend to, and I had to find someone to watch Chibi-Chibi."

"Who'd you find?" Makoto asked as she brought out the bundle from beneath the table.

Usagi's eyes went wide as she tore the package open, then even wider when she saw what her friend had cooked. She dug in as she spoke around a mouthful of food. "Setsuna."

She was too preoccupied with her happy tummy to take note of the glances exchanged between her friends.

xoxoxox

The hardware store was a small little shop in the downtown area. It was a bit of a walk from where she had been, even with the bus ride in between, but it was the only one that carried what she needed.

The drama club funds rested in her purse as she wandered through the store, throwing the items from a checklist into her basket. She had not lied when she said she needed to go to the hardware store, or that she had forgotten until then about it, but she figured afterward she would just stop by Setsuna's place to 'investigate' the new boy properly.

Had she thought about it, she would have done so sooner. However, it had not been until the other day that she realized the boy felt more for Usagi than he was letting on. It was a simple observance, really. Usagi had her back toward the boy as she argued with Seiya, and there was just something about the _look_ Minori gave her that had forced her forkful of rice to pause in midair. It was familiar somehow, an expression she had seen somewhere before. Granted, she had often seen love-struck expressions on many people before, but this was different. She had seen it so many times somewhere before, but the where of it remained firmly out of reach.

"Minako?"

The girl turned toward the familiar voice. Luck shone down brightly on the senshi of love as Setsuna stood at the end of the aisle.

"Hi! What brings you here?" She would be casual and calm, and not get too overly excited.

"Picking some things up for Minori," the older woman replied, indicating her own basket full of odds and ends.

This would be a perfect opportunity to ask something, to needle information out of the older senshi. "So, how long has Minori been staying with you?"

Setsuna gave a noncommittal shrug. "A few months now."

"Did you know him long before you decided to let him stay with you?" That sounded a bit too much like she was drilling for information. "I just mean that, what with this time and age, a person has to be careful on who they let in to their home." Great, now that made her sound like a paranoid woman who hid behind blinds and was certain the mail man was out to get her. "What I _mean_ is, how's he been?"

Setsuna's eyebrow rose in a perfect arch. "He's been fine."

She was saved from saying anything else by the sharp trill of the older woman's cell phone. Breathing a sigh of relief, Minako busied herself by reading the ingredients and warning labels on a tube of caulk.

"I'll be there as soon as I can," Setsuna responded as she hung up the phone. Minako turned to look at her, where the older woman paused as she put her phone away. "I need to head to the school, apparently there's a meeting I did not know of."

This was it, the moment she was waiting for! "Would you like me to take those to Minori, for you?"

Setsuna's answering smile was soft and kind. "That would be wonderful, thank you."

It took all her will power not to do an excited little jig of victory right there in the aisle. She felt the weight of the basket on her arm, and remembered her own errand. "Er, would you mind dropping these off at the drama department? It can wait until your meeting's over."

There was a pause. "I'd be more than happy to do that."

"Great!"

xoxoxox

"Chibi?" Tiny hands splashed in beige paint before plastering the wall in grubby prints.

Minori winced, thankful that the paint was nontoxic. At least, he figured, she hadn't decided to discover her inner Picasso on the freshly painted wall.

It was a random twist that had led to his impromptu babysitting. Usagi's parents had a business party they both needed to attend to while Usagi herself was supposed to be studying for an exam. Setsuna had offered to watch the small child, as Shingo quickly announced he had a sleepover to attend.

Then, when Minori found himself running low on paint and other supplies to work on the shack, the older woman had decided it best to leave the small child in the care of an amnesiac teen who couldn't tell if a cough meant a dust attack or sudden death.

He would not say he minded the chore, exactly, for while he still held a fear that he would somehow mess this up and the day would end with a call to 119 and an overprotective father figure threatening to send him straight to the morgue, the young girl had a certain calming effect about her. Even when she was creating mayhem and havoc with her inquisitive nature, such as when she decided to 'help' by knocking the last of the paint thinner into the toilet, he found it difficult to muster up the exasperation to roll his eyes.

"Chibi-Chibi!" Chibi toddled over to where he stood, smile wide and hands held high.

Minori grabbed the girl by the wrists and hoisted her up to settle on a hip. "You thinking of doing the same thing in the bedroom?" His only response was a giggle and a face full of paint. "Thank you, I needed that."

"Knock, knock!" The familiar voice, one he rarely heard outside of school, forced his head to swivel toward the open door. Minako stood in the doorway, bags weighing down her hands. "I ran into Setsuna at the hardware store."

"What were you doing at the hardware store?" He shifted the weight of the young girl as Minako plopped the bags down on the table.

"Just some things for the drama club." Rifling through the bags, she pulled out a roller. "Did you need any help?"

"Well, not really," he jerked his head to the messy artwork adorning his wall. "Got my own little helper right here. Besides, wouldn't want you to go through the trouble."

"Nonsense! I'd love to help!" Before his eyes, the teenage girl transformed from an ordinary high school student to a terrifying entity of sheer stubborn will and determination. Pulling out a pair of long rubber gloves, she snapped them in place. "All right! Let's get going!"

Minori watched, helpless against the blond tornado as she tore through the small living space. His eyes could barely keep up with her, but things fell. A lot of things. More paint landed on the floor than the wall, and somehow plaster from the ceiling landed in the middle of the tarp with a heavy groan.

"Um, I don't think this is quite how the job's supposed to get done." At this rate, he'd need to spend an afternoon fixing everything that the bubbling blond helped with. However, the wall was now painted, and that seemed to have been Minako's primary goal.

Ignoring the chaos around her, Minako admired her handiwork on the wall. "Great, that's done! Time for a break!" With a laugh, she sprinted for the kitchen, grabbing Minori's arm as she passed and dragged him along.

Fighting for balance and some semblance of sanity, the boy tried to steady himself. Chibi-Chibi squealed and giggled in his hold, and he figured that so long as one of them was having fun, things weren't as bad as they appeared.

Before he knew it, he was seated and a large platter full of tea cups and a tea pot was set before him, Chibi-Chibi to his right as Minako sat across from him. When had he gotten a tea pot? And where did the tray full of snacks come from? His cupboards were all but bare.

"Now," she began as she poured them tea. "How are you feeling? I heard from Usagi about the wreck. Everything going okay?"

Minori shifted under her quiet scrutiny. "Well, yeah, I guess." His memory lapse was not something that was common knowledge, and he preferred to keep it that way. "As well as can be expected."

Her conversation quickly took a different turn as she asked completely random questions out of the blue. How did he like Tokyo? Where had he lived before? Had he ever been arrested for anything?

This last one had him baffled, but the questions kept coming. He sighed and answered them the best he could, and avoided those he couldn't. Then she asked something that had him snorting tea through his nose.

"Does Usagi know you have feelings for her?"

It took him a moment to recover and for the burn to leave his sinuses. "What is this, do you guys meet places and discuss these things? That's the second time someone's accused me of liking her."

"Ah ha, that's not a denial!"

"No, but it's not a confession, either," he pointed out as he mopped up his mess with a linen napkin.

She regarded him for a moment before leaning forward, elbows on the table and fingers folded over one another. "Look. I like you. You're weird, but you seem okay."

"Thanks, I think." Did tea leave stains on shirts? Did it matter? It was already covered in paint.

"I'm serious. I wouldn't tell you this otherwise."

"Yeah? Tell me what?" Chibi-Chibi had gotten jam on her face. Using the clean part of his napkin, he leaned over and wiped the sticky grime away from the giggling girl.

"If you're expecting anything to come of this, you're only going to get hurt." Minako's expression was firm, and the slight hard edge in her eye would have scared him if he hadn't witnessed her attempt to help earlier.

"I can't tell if that's friendly advice or a threat."

Minako giggled then, and waved her hand. "Oh no, if that were a threat there would be no question!" Her face schooled into the same features as before. "Seriously, though. What she has with Mamoru is not something that can be changed by you."

The constant reminders of this unknown boyfriend irritated his last nerve. Everywhere he looked, he was constantly reminded of the man. "Look, I know about him already, okay?" He scoffed, head shaking. "I understand completely that she has no interest in anyone but him. I just don't get what makes him so damn special. If I were him, I'd at least have the decency to write her back!"

Minako's eyes widened. "What do you mean? Of course he does."

"If he did, then why doesn't she ever mention _anything_ about his letters? She's always writing to him, and has no qualms telling anyone who would listen what she writes about." He stabbed at a store bought pastry, relishing as the red filling oozed out.

xoxoxox

Their study session had been a feat in futility. No one could concentrate for some reason, not even Ami. This would have been cause for concern in of itself, but all Usagi wanted right then was a nap.

Ignoring their chatter, she curled over the small table, burrowing into the folds of her arms.

Dreams were funny. When a streak of nightmares would appear, every once in a while a pleasant one would pop up to lull the dreamer into a false sense of security. Or perhaps it was to save the remnants of sanity, to prove that just because there are night terrors now, eventually they will fade away and leave behind dreams such as this one.

Or perhaps it was its own kind of nightmare. Beautiful and achingly sweet, where when she woke up it would hurt even more than the dreams of terror and loss.

So Usagi knew this was a dream, but she was determined to enjoy it for everything she was worth. Here and now, she was exactly where she wanted to be.

"_Usako," he started, draping his coat around her shoulders. It was twilight and mist from the lake mottled her skin. "You're trembling."_

_It wasn't until he said that that she realized it was true. And it also wasn't until then that she actually_felt_cold._

"_I'm fine," she assured him, pulling the jacket closer all the same. Then the tears came, and no matter what she did they continued to fall. "Are you thinking of me at all?"_

_He pulled her close, arms winding around her in a protective barrier she had not felt in far too long. "You are my last thought, so you are my every thought."_

_Usagi burrowed into him, wishing she could stay here forever. Is that was true, why did he never write her? Just how busy could he be?_

_She opened her mouth to speak but Mamoru cut her off. "Let's do something."_

"_Like what?"_

"_Anything. Everything." They were in the park now, sitting at their bench as the sun shone brightly above them. "I'm not ready to go back yet."_

_Licking the ice cream cone in her hand, Usagi took in his profile, once more memorizing the lines and contours of his face. "I don't want to leave, either."_

_The ballroom was large and grand, a symphony being played as he waltzed her around the room. "Let's not think about anything else for a while. I just want to spend this time with you. Please?"_

_It was rare for him to ask anything of her, especially for something as simple as this. She would grant him this time, time that she wanted as well. The spinning of the dance made her feel lightheaded and dizzy, and she had to lean her forehead against his shoulder. They stopped as the song ended, and it took a moment for the room to catch up._

_The beach stretched before them, water rushing and coursing through their toes before descending back to the ocean._

_His apartment, always so warm and inviting to her, was her favorite place in the world, more so than even her own room or the arcade. Music played, loud enough to be heard yet soft enough to be part of the ambiance. He was sprawled on the couch, one foot firmly on the floor while the other dangled over the arm, head resting on her thigh. A book lay on his chest, forgotten, as he stared up at her as she sifted his hair through her fingers._

"_Chaos is coming," he whispered, grabbing her free hand in his own and entwining their fingers._

"_I thought we weren't going to talk about anything else? Just us?" The pad of her thumb stroked a nervous path along his finger._

"_I need you to know something. I have too much to tell you and no time, but you need to know this if nothing else." He sat up, never once letting go of her hand, until he could look down at her. "Not even death can keep me from you."_

Usagi woke up in an instant, still burrowed in the crook of her arms. Unlike the nightmares, where she remembered nothing, the dream stood out in her memory in stark vividity. She bit her lip and sucked in her breath, trying to keep the burst of emotion from escaping her and alerting those around her to her distress. It really _had_ been a dream. Mamoru wasn't there, she was still alone, and the emptiness of the crowded room threatened to drown her.

His last words echoed through her mind. What did they mean? What else had he been trying to say? Usagi felt a sense of foreboding well up within her. Something was coming, and it was coming soon. She knew, without knowing how, that she would soon be faced with something she would rather die than remember.


	12. Discord

**Rating:** PG-13

**Disclaimer: **I don't own them. If I did, there would have been even more angst in Sailor Stars.

**Summary:** In the attempt to save the royal family from temporal disaster, Pluto succeeds in saving only one. The only time they can go is a time where neither exists, a young girl hurts, and the ability to fix things is still within reach.

**AN:** Since I have a decent head start on writing, I've decided to try a twice a week posting deal. If it comes down to the end and I'm struggling, I may have to switch it back to a weekly thing.

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><p><strong>Chapter Twelve – <strong>_Discord_

Neptune and Uranus lead the way as Pluto trailed behind. Neptune studied the small innocuous rectangle of paper in her hands. "Did that woman seriously just give this to us?"

"Yeah, apparently. Tried to take the seed, left behind a Ginga TV business card," Uranus responded. "That woman is one special snowflake."

Neptune shook her head. This enemy of theirs, not the minions that were sent, but the one behind the curtain, gave her an uneasy feeling. This was not the same enemy they had faced in the past. This was something more, something more wide spread than just this solar system. The waves were restless, even in the comfort of bed.

They left without word to the others. It was their job, after all, to protect the princess from enemies outside the system. Still, what would happen if they failed? They were the front line, and should anything breach their defenses, who would remain behind to protect the others?

Neptune paused on her trail and leaned against a wall. "We're going into a war with no way of knowing anything," she started as she revealed her uncertainties. When she was done, she slid to the ground and rest her arms on her knees, card held in from of her. "They're strong, but they're still children."

"I believe, should something happen, we can be assured that the other senshi can take care of things. They do, after all, have help." Pluto knelt down. "Those Starlights that appear once in a while tend to have the same end game as we do."

Neptune looked up at Pluto, head tilt to one side. "But they are outsiders, not from our system. We can't afford to trust them."

The senshi of time shrugged as she stood upright. "I took a risk and confessed to Starfighter who Minori truly was. My trust has yet to be betrayed."

"You did _what?_" Uranus growled as she proceeded toward Pluto. "What if she lets it slip to Usagi while they're in a fight?"

"The woman has no need to tell the princess anything. After all, the woman does not yet know who the princess is, or who Endymion's identity was here in the present."

"Yeah, but who's to say she won't figure it out?" Neptune rose from her spot, head shaking. "If she gives this information to Usagi, she will put two and two together. I don't wish to be present when that happens."

"I knew them in my time," Pluto stated. "Or at least knew of them. They were negotiating peace with Neo Queen Serenity the day it happened." There was no need to expound on what "it" was.

Uranus shook her head with a scowl. Before she could respond in anyway, Neptune stood and placed her hand on a tense arm. "What's done is done. I just hope that your confidence is kept."

"As do I," Pluto agreed. Then, subject clearly finished with, the older senshi continued down the path. "We are clear on our mission, am I correct?"

"Yeah," Uranus growled, still discontent with the news that had them both on edge. "Basic reconnaissance, then time to end this."

"I just hope that it's that simple," Neptune added a moment later while crushing the card in her fingers.

xoxoxox

"Have you seen Setsuna?" Usagi asked Minori as she sat beside him in class. It was a rare day when she arrived early at school. She had not seen her friend in a few days, and she was starting to get worried. When she had gone by the nurse's station yesterday for a band aid, the nurse on duty had merely shrugged at her inquiries.

The boy shrugged a shoulder as he kept his concentration on the book in front of him. "She said she had a family emergency to take care of."

Usagi pulled back to give him a look. Setsuna _had_ no family that she knew of, not in this time at least. "Are you sure?"

"Sure as I can be. That's what she said anyway." He flipped the page of the book and continued reading.

How was that possible, though? "So you're on your own then? Has Haruka stopped by to check up on you or anything? To make sure you have enough to eat and such?"

He paused to stare at the chalkboard for a moment, jaw clenched, before he resumed reading with a sigh. "Haruka's on vacation with Michiru. They won't be back until next week."

Next week? But Michiru had a concert this weekend, and would not cancel it for something like a vacation.

All three of them, gone for who knew how long, was something to get suspicious about. Especially considering neither one of them came to say goodbye, which she had to admit stung. There had to be a reason why they would just up and leave, though. Something she was missing.

Before she could think any further on the subject, something else came to mind, something more immediate. "Hey, are you okay?"

He looked up from his book and looked at her. "You ever have a day where you're just a bit off?"

Usagi thought for a moment. "None where I couldn't act happy, at least." She had gotten very good at that.

Minori snorted and muttered under his breath, too low for her to hear even with their close proximity, before continuing. "Okay, then how about dreams where you know you remember something, but when you wake up its gone?"

Her eyes widened. "And you're trying your hardest to remember, but the harder you try, the more you forget, and you know it was something important? Kind of like that?"

He nodded. "Something like that." Minori closed his book and shifted to face her better, one arm draped over the back of his seat while the other rest on the desk. "I've been dreaming about who knows what, and it's been leaving me with a bad taste in my mouth. Like something I should remember but don't want to."

"Me, too!" she eagerly responded as she scooted closer. "It's like some weird dream demon is sucking out our sanity through our noses while we sleep!"

His eyes were wide and he just nodded slowly in response. Then his eyes darted past hers and his expression turned into a scowl. He turned to face his book again, burying his nose in another reality within seconds.

Confused, Usagi turned to see Seiya entering the room, waving over his shoulder to some people as he came to stop at her desk.

"Hey, Odango, can't make lunch today. Got a thing with Yaten and Taiki I gotta go to." He leaned forward on her desk, grinning down at her. "Won't miss me too much, will you?"

Usagi rolled her eyes and planted her hand flat on his chest, nudging him away. "I'm sure Minori and I can contain our disappointment."

Seiya's eyebrows rose. "Big words, Usagi. You read the dictionary last night?"

Caught, she stammered out a response. "N-no! It's…just something I heard Ami say once."

"Better be careful. Someone may hear you use those words and have a heart attack." He nimbly leaped from her swiping hand, chuckling as he settled in behind her.

Tilting her nose in the air, she decided she would better spend the remaining minutes before class starting a letter to Mamoru.

She had only gotten to the third 'I miss you' when the teacher came in and called the class to start.

xoxoxox

Seiya poked through her lunch as she waited for the others to arrive, lost in thought. For the past several days, she had tried to wrap her mind around the fact that the annoying brat sitting next to Usagi was some temporally misplaced king. How was it, then, that the brat looked so young? What about the apparent lack of memory? She had read enough of Earth literature to know about evil spells and curses, but those were all just fairy tales. Granted, many Terran cultures would look on her life story and categorize it as nothing more than a children's tale, but there was a fine line between her reality and the absurd.

The woman with him had mentioned something about a princess. Seiya supposed that in one way they had a common goal, protecting a monarch that meant more than their very lives, but how was the twerp supposed to accomplish anything in the state he was in? She feared if she sneezed he would fall over.

Who was this princess? For the life of her, Seiya could not recall anyone she had saved more than once, and usually that was a result of Sailor Moon interfering with the mission. As much as she wished she could trust the local senshi, the truth was she and her sisters were strangers here, and Earth's history alone indicated the planet's inhabitants' lack of tolerance toward outsiders. There was something about Sailor Moon that made Seiya want to trust _her_ though.

That left the only people they had any regular contact with in fights; the senshi of this planet. It was an absurd theory, though, for whoever heard of something as ridiculous as a princess fighting alongside her protectors as one of them?

Noise from the hallway had her on alert, and she only relaxed when Yaten and Taiki entered the quiet room. "We need to talk," the tallest among them started.

"We've been on this planet long enough. We need to find a way to end this fight now and find our princess." Yaten sat beside Seiya, pulling her leg up to her chest, own lunch forgotten.

"What are we supposed to do? Run around town with signs and posters?" Seiya pushed her lunch away. "We just have to sing louder."

"All we've been doing has been singing!" Taiki leaned against the far wall, a mild scowl marring her features. "If our words haven't reached her now, will they ever?"

Seiya bristled. She was only able to stay sane with the knowledge that their princess was out there somewhere. She could _feel_ it, and she knew that if they just held out for a little bit longer.

"Just a little bit longer, that's all." She worried her lip, knowing how her next comment will be taken but had to throw the suggestion out there. "If worse comes to worse, we can always ask Sailor Moon for help."

"No!" Their answer was immediate and in unison.

"They're not part of us, Seiya. They can't be trusted." Taiki pushed away from the wall to approach the group. "The enemy is made up of sailor senshi, in case you couldn't tell. What's to say they're not in on it themselves?"

She wanted to laugh at the absurdity, but it was yet another risk they could not take. They were truly alone in their search of their princess, the three of them in a sea of six billion people.

For one brief moment, Seiya thought of how hopeless the situation was.

"I say we take the fight to them," Yaten said as she sat up, pulling out her lunch. "Today, after school. We don't rest until we find something, _anything_, that would lead us to them."

"I agree," Taiki said as she sat, pulling out her own lunch. "We've played the role of the idol for too long now. It's time to show this world just who we are."

While her fellow senshi ate with gusto, Seiya continued to pick at her own food. This could only spell disaster.

xoxoxox

Haruka tugged at the tight collar around her throat. She was in Ginga, under the guise of one of the many faceless employees currently working in the station. In a place this large, it was easy to hide among the other workers there, even with current cutbacks being what they were.

Already she had checked the two main studios, using her knowledge from an elective course to work the teleprompt in one area and the graphics station at another. Those two were clean, and in none of them did she find anyone even remotely resembling Sailor Aluminum Seiren or Lead Crow. Not that she was positive she would be able to identify them, even if they came face to face. Not unless they conveniently wore their fuku to work.

She passed Michiru in the hall and gave a short shake of her head, and received one as well. Neither of them, it seemed, had run across any information.

Next on her list was to check the unused studio, currently closed due to budget cuts. She stepped in the dark room, turning up the floor lights from the control room. It was dusty and smelled of old electronics, but there was nothing amiss with the room. It was just an overpriced storage room at the moment.

Sighing, she wiped the dust from the screen of an old teleprompt and studied her reflection on the screen. Their lead, it seemed, was about as good use to them as telling someone to find a certain coin in an antique shop. Nearly impossible, and just as frustrating.

Time was running out. Haruka was not sure how she knew this, but it was something she felt in her gut. It had been there since Endymion's car wreck, and only intensified by his loss of memory. Change was in the air, and sooner rather than later, there would be an end to something.

xoxoxox

Everything he did annoyed Minori to no end. The way he leaned toward Usagi, the way he leaned back in his chair, even the way he _breathed_ gave Minori a test in patience. There was no doubt about it; Seiya was perhaps the most annoying person on the planet.

Logically, Minori knew he was just irritable, unable to fully cope with the circumstances surrounding his situation. After all, how many teenage boys had to pretend throughout the day that they barely remembered _anyone?_ Seiya was, he also knew, merely an outlet and an easy target to take his mind off his own troubles.

Despite knowing all this, Minori had only one thought as Seiya leaned forward to whisper again at Usagi, and her answering giggle did not make things any better. _Screw logic._

"We would be in the classroom by now if you would just shut up," he said, shifting his empty lunch box between hands.

Seiya pulled back and stared at the boy. "What's your problem? You've been sour all day."

"My _problem,_" he grated out through grit teeth. "Is having to suffer through yet another one of your grandiose tales of glory. Tell me, just how many concerts have you done? Is it thirty-six, as you said last week, or is it the twenty-five you mentioned today? Each, I might add, in excruciating detail."

Instead of responding in the ire he hoped for, Seiya leaned against the wall and smirked. "Depends on how you count charity functions."

"I highly doubt you find time for studies in between all these concerts you've performed. Though considering your grades, I wouldn't doubt very much if something shifted your scholastic focus."

Finally there was a glint of agitation. "If you must know, I don't _need_ to study, unlike some people who choose to sleep through class."

"I sleep just to escape your incessant chatter!" Students bustled around them, some bumping Minori's shoulder as they passed, which only served to fuel his annoyance. "Is it at all possible for you to keep your mouth shut for more than five minutes?"

"Um, you guys, I really don't think we have the time for this," Usagi stepped into his peripheral. Normally a point of calm for him, the memory of her giggling at whatever Seiya had said nearly had him tackling the taller boy to the ground.

"Only if it's possible for you to quite nagging like an old school marm," the idol ground out. "I never took you for a pesky old woman, Minori."

"Maybe if some people behaved and didn't make an ass of themselves, I wouldn't have to be!"

"What, so you're pissed because you don't remember anything interesting in your life to add to the conversation?"

Minori's eyes widened and shot a look at Usagi, the only other person outside his guardian and cousin to know the truth. However, she kept looking between the two of them in confusion. The hows and whys of Seiya knowing the secret would come later. "No, I know that there's rarely the need to be a braggart! What I _do _know is that actions speak louder than your pitiful words."

"And what great actions have you accomplished, little boy? You can barely hold a pencil let alone a fist!"

The bell rang, indicating the start of class. Minori paid it no mind as he stepped closer to his opponent. "Only an uneducated lout would believe that fists are the only action needed to resolve a situation."

Seiya took the final step between them, glaring down. "Want to test that theory?"

"Would both of you just stop?" Usagi tried to step between the two, her small hands pushing against the chests of two stubborn teenage boys. "We're going to be late for class!"

"Correction, Miss Tsukino. You three are already late." All three heads turned to see the chemist teacher, known to be the strictest amongst the school faculty. "And with that, detention for each of you. Get to your classes now."

Seiya opened his mouth to protest, a look of panic across his face. Then, thinking better of it, he mumbled out an acquiesce before storming past, his shoulder shoving hard into Minori's.

Minori stood for a moment longer, jaw working hard as his fingers twitched. He had been two or three comments away from doing something he would likely forget once this mood had passed.

"Minori?" He felt a tug on his arm, and looked down at Usagi. "We need to get to class."

He allowed her to lead him back to class, the frost filled glare he shared with Seiya only fueling his desire to continue their fight.

xoxoxox

Lunch came, and the three met in the small break room in the large building. They spoke around the water cooler, dishing out baleful glances at those who came to join. Eventually they were left alone by some unspoken agreement by the actual employees.

"We need a different approach," Neptune started. "We're finding nothing on our own."

"Perhaps we should focus on the areas of the building we have not yet been," Pluto suggested. "I have located the office of Aya Reiko, the name on the card. Perhaps we will have better luck there."

Uranus kept her eye trained on the crowd of people around them. "I suggest we do it now, rather than later. Any one of these people can be working with them."

"Or perhaps all of them," Pluto agreed as she headed for the exit. "I do not wish to remain here any longer."

Reiko's office was in one of the underpopulated areas of the building. Most of the office space surrounding her area had been closed due to lack of employees.

The office was empty when they arrived, though the door stood open. "You two search inside. I will remain out here."

As Uranus and Neptune nodded and entered the room, Pluto leaned against the doorframe. Her plan, should she be caught, was to maintain a façade of an employee who believed they had a meeting with the mysterious Aya Reiko.

The excuse was not needed, for no more than five minutes later her two companions exited the small office. "Did you find anything?"

"Just a lot of empty food containers," Uranus noted. "Recent, too. I think she eats more than Usagi."

Pluto deflated a little at the news. "Come on, then. Time to search elsewhere."

It was by pure chance and mere coincidence they passed the set of double doors when they did. Pluto paused her stride as she felt a pulse in the strands of time. With a gasp, she turned and walked toward the door, placing a hand on the warm metal.

"I believe this is it," she said when the others caught up. "Can either of you sense anything?"

"Just a faint disturbance," Neptune said as she touched the door as well. "But it's there, just beyond the door."

Pluto stood back and took in the double doors. Innocuous on their own, easy to mistake as part of the natural structure of the building. The more she thought about going in there, the harder it was to maintain the knowledge that such a door existed.

Pulling out a piece of paper, she wrote down the floor and room number just in case something should happen. "It's going to be difficult getting in there. Already it's trying to expel us."

"Expel us from what?" Uranus asked as she leaned against the wall right next to the door.

"From entering the room." Shoving the slip of paper in her back pocket, she turned to Uranus. "I believe we just found the portal."

"The only question is," Neptune asked. "Is how do we get through?"

xoxoxox

Seiya could not believe her misfortune. She had no time to inform the others of her impromptu sentence, and she could almost taste their disappointing glowers when she finally came home.

The teacher, with his nose deep in a book, paid little attention to his students. He was so far gone within the story that he paid little attention to noises below a whisper. Seiya used this opportunity to voice her displeasure.

"This is all your fault I'll have you know," she accused, glowering at Minori from across Usagi's desk.

"And yet you're still talking."

"Only because you're an arrogant brat who thinks he has everything figured out so well."

"Look, can we just agree to leave each other alone for the rest of detention? Tomorrow we can go back to our regularly scheduled passive aggressive intolerance of each other, I promise."

Seiya opened her mouth to respond, but Usagi turned to her with these eyes that would but an injured rabbit to shame. Closing her mouth, she slunk in her desk and mumbled an agreement to Minori's demand. She could not resist a peek out of the corner of her eye, though, when she witnessed Usagi turn toward the young brat. Minori, mouth open, blinked back in silent shock. Seiya knew, and was both pleased and jealous, that the look Minori received held much more than the look she had given her.

_Damn that brat, anyway._ He had a princess he was supposed to be finding. Some girl named Serenity who, if she were anything like Seiya's princess, made that entire galaxy so much brighter just by her existence alone. Instead, Minori was too busy mooning over the girl between them.

Of course, Seiya could not say she was not doing near the same thing. The difference was, she _knew_ that their princess was of top priority. Minori, or whatever his name really was, did not have a clue as to what he needed to do. Part of her envied him that, while another wanted to shield him from the inevitable heartache she saw coming both their ways.

She opened her mouth to say something, but the apology died on her tongue as the atmosphere around them bristled with imploding energy. It was something she recognized through countless battles, and the hair on the back of her neck stood on end.

The concussive force of the materializing telephone booth sent the teacher sprawling on the ground. After a few seconds it became apparent he would not be getting up any time soon.

Sailor Aluminum Seiren stepped out, delicately bypassing the debris of the mess she had made.

"Oh, good afternoon. I was very much hoping I would find you here," she said with a smile and a tilt of the head.

Seiya tensed, crouching low. "What do you want with us?"

The senshi giggled before covering her mouth with her fingers. "Oh, pardon me, that was rude. But I'm not here for you, silly."

"Then who are you here for?" Minori asked, taking a step back and clutching his hand over his heart.

"Not you, either, though you make for an excellent back up plan. I do appreciate your kindness in being here today." Her eyes turned toward the slender girl between them, and Seiya felt her hackles rise. "I have come for you."

_-end Chapter Twelve_

Dun dun dun. Next chapter, shit hits the fan! Again! We're coming through the final turn, and though it's a long run still to come, the end is in sight!


	13. Veritas

**Rating:** PG-13

**Disclaimer: **I don't own them. If I did, there would have been even more angst in Sailor Stars.

**Summary:** In the attempt to save the royal family from temporal disaster, Pluto succeeds in saving only one. The only time they can go is a time where neither exists, a young girl hurts, and the ability to fix things is still within reach.

**AN: **This almost didn't get posted! Until about an hour ago, _I was out of interwebz!_ It has been...a boring couple of days :P

**Chapter Thirteen – **_Veritas_

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><p>Seiya bristled at Seiren as her finger pointed toward Usagi. Minori beat her into the protective stance as he placed himself between senshi and girl. With no time to feel agitation toward the boy, she instead prepared herself for whatever may come.<p>

There was no place to transform, not without giving herself away. Then Usagi would know what it was she had been hiding, and though the thought had come to her on more than one occasion, this was never the situation she would want it to be revealed. She wanted to confess on her _own_ terms, and not when she was forced to.

"Oh dear, don't be like that," Seiren said with a sigh, clicking her tongue. Unlike the other enemies, there seemed to be no mocking, no condescending. It was as though this woman genuinely wished for limited violence.

To Seiya, these enemies were the most dangerous.

"I know why you're here, and you're not getting it," Minori growled, the effect lost with his soft pitched voice. "I won't let you!"

"Don't worry, I just want what I came here for, then I'll be gone." She sighed again. "If it makes you feel better, I could take yours, as well. Galaxia was quite irritated I just left it behind."

Galaxia. That was not the first time Seiya had heard the name, but the context was lost on her. Had it been during a previous fight? Or from before she came to earth?

"I'm not going to let you touch her." Seiya rose her eyebrows at Minori. His tone, his stance, all of it indicated that this was not the first time he had been in a similar situation. Was something coming back to him, or was it a habit born of instinct? And why Usagi?

Seiren shook her head. "Very well." She clicked her bracelets together, sending out two orbs of light.

Minori shoved Usagi to the side while flinging out his hand. When he landed, he eyed Seiren and cursed. "Missed!"

Seiya turned to the board where three pencils dug into the chalkboard, each still vibrating with the force of impact.

"Oh dear, that would have hurt." Seiren observed the handy work as well, lifting a delicate hand to her mouth. "I'm honestly quite surprised they stuck."

Using the distraction to her advantage, Seiya pulled Usagi up and made sure she was safely tucked behind her two protectors.

"You better think twice about this. You don't want to see what _I_ can do." In this form, nothing, but Seiya was determined that she would let nothing harm Usagi, even at the risk of revealing her secret.

"You two _insist_ on making things difficult, don't you? This is all rather violent, but oh well." Stepping back, she screwed up her face in concentration. "_Galactica Tsunami."_

Her hair grew impossibly long, snaking its way through the room. It snaked up and around her body, and out of the corner of her eye she saw it do the same to Minori. Then, as though she were no more than a rag, she was lifted off the ground and to one side, leaving Usagi completely exposed.

Seiya did not wait for the bracelets to come together. Wiggling her arm free, she pulled out her star broach.

As she called out her transformation, she heard something she never expected from behind her. As her vision cleared, Starfighter turned and saw Sailor Moon standing where Usagi had been.

xoxoxox

It was not difficult to find a place to transform in the section of the building they were in. Even the danger of cameras, which they thoroughly checked for beforehand, was apparently nonexistent here. The only camera they did find had its wire disconnected from the wall.

"They're apparently not that concerned with inner office politics," Uranus comments as she flicked her fingers over a pleat in her short skirt.

"Perhaps it is not the company that is responsible," Pluto suggested, tapping the tip of her staff on the ground. "It is possible that whoever created the door made it so that no one would be able to discover its location."

Uranus shrugged. "Seems like a lot of trouble, if you ask me. Why make a portal in a television studio, anyway? The two are not exactly the same kind of evil."

"No one expects a portal in a studio," Neptune pointed out. "Granted, I doubt anyone expects a portal of this kind anywhere."

"Ah, to be a naïve and brainless civilian again," Uranus sighed. "Then I could happily live my life with my head buried in the sand."

Neptune chuckled. "Are you saying you regret it?"

The look the shorter senshi received caused Pluto to glance away. "Of course not."

"Good. Let's go." Neptune led the way, checking up and down the empty hallways for stragglers.

The corridor was void of any civilian or enemy. With one last check back and forth, Neptune unleashed her attack first. The wall was scorched, but the door itself remained intact.

Pluto tried next, whispering her deadly attack that would leave rubble in its wake under normal circumstances. Though there was slight damage to the door when she stood back, there was not enough to break through the barrier.

Uranus met with the same result at the end of her attack.

"Perhaps this requires a bit more persuasion on our part," Pluto suggested as she wiped her brow.

"A combined effort, you're saying?" Uranus bent her knees, grinning at the door over a clenched fist. Though not an enemy she would see herself facing on a normal basis, there was something cathartic in attacking something that would not fight back.

Pluto nodded. "It appears to be the only left course of action."

Without another word, the three moved into alignment in unison, each instinctively going to where their blast would do the most damage.

Their first attack buckled the metal, yet it still would not budge. Their second caused the hinges to creak and grown in protest, one tearing from its holdings in the wall.

They stood back to catch their breath. It was taxing to use their abilities in quick succession of each other, and rarely did they have cause for multiple attacks. In many cases, they would stagger their attacks one after another, reserving the remainder of their energy for the more physical battle of fists.

When they launched their next attack, Uranus concentrated on pulling as much force behind her ability as she could. The others appeared to have done the same, for the resulting explosion knocked the three to the ground.

Blocking her face from flying shrapnel, Uranus eyes their handy work. The door was obliterated, nothing but metal scraps remaining. Beyond the entrance lay a black void that both called them forth and pushed them back.

xoxoxox

Rei raced down the sidewalk, sure that she would be the last one to arrive. It was times like these that she hated her school and her inability to attend with her friends. It would make get togethers so much easier to attend.

She spotted three out of four friends standing at the entrance way to their school. Picking up speed, she waved her arm and called out a greeting. She was panting by the time she stopped in front of them.

"Sorry I'm late, there were some last minute preparations for our school festival." She had learned her lesson and was not going to do everything, but she still felt an obligation to help where she could.

"Don't worry about it," Makoto said with a wave of her hand. "Usagi's got detention, so we'll be here for a little longer yet."

The news made her want to collapse on the ground. "Detention _again?_ What did she do this time, skip class?"

"This time it's not her fault this time, actually," the taller girl noted.

"Yeah, I heard from Miaka who heard from Yui who talked to Tetsuya who saw it in the hall. She was trying to stop Minori and Seiya from fighting," Minako offered. "I hear they almost came to blows."

Rei pinched the bridge of her nose. "I knew there was something with that guy. Picking a fight with Seiya of all people."

"We're not sure who started it," Ami said. "Either way, we have a while to wait yet."

Still not sure on what to make of the newcomer, Rei wondered if anyone would notice if she slipped away to give the boy a friendly questioning. Not that she mistrusted Minako's judgment in character, but sometimes she was as trusting as Usagi when it came to people. _Especially_ if they were both male and cute.

The minutes crept by as she and the others talked about their day. Minako was just retelling a scene she had seen between an infamous couple in the school, detailing how they had broken up yet again, when Rei felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end.

Gasping through the gooseflesh that smattered her skin, she whipped her head toward the school. "You guys, something's up."

Just then a flash of light filtered through one of the windows, and a familiar silhouette could be seen through the glass.

"Usagi?" Rei breathed as she rushed toward the school. Without turning to look behind her, she pulled out her transformation rod.

xoxoxox

He struggled against the ropey lengths of hair when it hit, that sudden and familiar pain that struck when he least expected it. _No, not now. Any time but now!_ Setsuna's continual reminders of what to do at times like this came to him. _Breathe through it. Hold it tight to your chest._

He tried, but something slipped through until his nails dug so sharply into his palm he could feel the blood well.

Gasping for air as the pain passed, his eyes darted around the room. Two things stood out to him.

It was no big revelation that Sailor Moon was Usagi. One moment, Minori was unaware that they were the same girl, and the next he found out and it was as though it had merely been something he _should_ have known.

What did throw him, though, was Seiya standing free of all hair and wearing so little. And with parts he would rather never see again on the annoying person.

Seiya volleyed an attack at Seiren, the surprise of it causing the hair to retreat and for him to fall unceremoniously onto the ground. Usagi was at his side in an instant. "Are you okay?"

Grunting, pain having faded, he nodded. "Yeah." He looks up at his rival, sorely confused. "You're a girl."

"So I've noticed." Seiya shifted on her feet, uncomfortable.

"You're a girl?"

"Oh, like you're one to talk! You're-" Whatever she had been about to say was cut off of her own accord. "Still annoying as hell."

"Seiya?" Usagi spoke for the first time. "You're Starfighter?"

Seiya winced as she turned to the girl. "Look, I wanted…I mean, it wasn't like I…well, you're one to talk."

Minori, puzzled at the girl's deflation, opened to his mouth to speak when he was cut off by Starfighter. "And you! You're all flustered by this," she indicated to her body before pointing to Usagi. "But that doesn't faze you?"

Thinking about it, he shrugged. "It makes sense."

"How does any of this make sense?"

He shrugged again. "It just does?"

"Well, this is an unexpected bump in the plans!" All three turned to Aluminum Seiren, who had recovered from her own shock. "I come here for a star seed but find two senshi? This…isn't exactly how I envisioned this meeting would go."

Minori unclenched his fist, feeling something drop from his fingers. There was something nostalgic about standing beside Sailor Moon like this. Despite being the only one with no form of power, he felt as though he could win this fight.

"No matter," Seiren continued. "I guess I'll just take what I came for anyway."

Before her bracelets could touch, Starfighter called out an attack, knocking the strange woman off her feet. "Like hell I'd let you!"

For once, he and Seiya agreed on something. Getting up, his fist closed around the cool length of metal, debris from the teacher's desk. His palm stung from his wounds, but he paid it no mind as he crept low.

He waited for the right moment, one that would give him the perfect opportunity for what he had in mind. He would keep her safe, he would protect.

It was not when Sailor Moon dodged from thrown debris, though he managed to deflect some of it with his makeshift cane. It wasn't when Starfighter leaped out of the way of the an attack from the bracelet. His time came when Starfighter returned the attack, sending the woman off kilter. That was his moment.

With a shout, he rushed forward. He heard a cry of alarm from behind as he hooked his arm around Seiren's waist, pushing all the force he could into his shoulder against her abdomen. His momentum carried them both into the phone booth, the force of his attack slamming the door shut behind them.

A glow circled them both, and he had just enough time to turn toward Usagi. She was shouting something, though he could not hear it. He gave her what he hoped was a reassuring smile. No matter what came of this, he regretted nothing.

xoxoxox

She stood clutching her doll, observing the crescent moon hanging with the low waning sun. The stars, though some of their light filtered through the dim light, were already dead, extinguished well before their time. How long until humans realized that Orion was nothing more than a memory? When will lost travelers no longer be able to find their way home by the light of the northern star? Years, maybe, or maybe the light would still burn for centuries after this planet's destruction.

It was not too late, though. Chaos could be reined in, _would_ be, and she would be the one to contain it. It was her duty in this lifetime, one that she had failed to uphold the first time around, but a mistake that she would spend the rest of her life correcting.

Chibi-Chibi sighed, a quiet sound on the loud street. She was alone. Though her soul remembered her friends, could recall them with such clarity it made her ache, she never had the chance to meet them this time around. Never met _him_ outside of dream and fantasy. Not until she stumbled across him in the park, awkward limbs and new body, but he could never hide who he was from her. Now, though, she sensed a shift in him, a change that threatened to sweep him away from her forever. She refused to let that happen and would gladly give up this lifetime with him for all the others they had shared.

Closing her eyes, she sensed the star seeds all around her. The ones whose brilliance would blacken to pitch swirled around her senses while the select few that would shine beyond death were barely a handful and tingled along her skin. Most of them resided in the school before her, others in a building across town. They pulsed through her, and she knew that she would not face this alone. Her own echoed the resonance, so much smaller in this form than normal. She had to keep it contained, knowing that the universe would be unable to contain two seeds emitting the same energy for long.

Something shifted as one seed blipped out for a brief moment before appearing elsewhere and her eyes snapped open. The earth called out its need for restoration, brittle and aging far faster than it should be, as the atmosphere crackled through her.

The doll fell to the pavement, face splintering where it lay forgotten as she started toward the school.

It was time.

xoxoxox

Seiya started for the phone booth just as the glow started, wanting to stop what she knew was about to happen. She could not believe what was going on. A young boy, a civilian no less, was about to be carted off under her watch. Though not a designated protector of this planet, the blow to her ego was palpable.

The tall red box disappeared in a flash of light, leaving behind nothing but debris and an unconscious teacher.

As the Usagi dove for the space where Minori had been, crying out his name, the door burst open to reveal the other sailor senshi of this system.

"What's going on?" Mars demanded as Mercury knelt beside the teacher.

"She took Minori," Usagi cried as she rushed to her friends. "She just took him, and we have to go get him!"

"What was that idiot thinking?" Seiya ground out, fist clenched. "What could _he_ do that we couldn't?" Damn that brat. It was one thing to play the hero when there was no other option. But there were two people more capable than he was to handle the situation. What did his rushing in there solve?

"He's going to be fine," Mercury announced as she stood. "Though we need to alert the paramedics right away."

"Would someone just explain what is going on?" Mars demanded.

As Sailor Moon explained the best she could through her panic and tears, something flashed scarlet out of the corner of Seiya's eye. Turning, she bent down and picked up a long stemmed budding rose, thorns tinged crimson.


	14. Revelations

**Rating:** PG-13

**Disclaimer: **I don't own them. If I did, there would have been even more angst in Sailor Stars.

**Summary:** In the attempt to save the royal family from temporal disaster, Pluto succeeds in saving only one. The only time they can go is a time where neither exists, a young girl hurts, and the ability to fix things is still within reach.

**AN: **So, I realize this is late. Again. Still. Sigh. And I shouldn't be posting, because school is busy and updates will be still delayed for awhile yet, but then I remembered this part was actually written! Yay! So I'mma post it. So there. Thank you all for the reviews and lack of torches!

**Chapter Fourteen –**_Revelations_

* * *

><p>The air hung acrid around him, stale and bitter though the space surrounding him seemed limitless. Minori had fallen from the phone booth to an unfamiliar world, and part of him knew before looking around that he was not exactly on Earth anymore. At least not in the way he knew it to be. There was a disconnect between him and the planet, something he never realized was there until it was gone. He felt empty without it.<p>

He struggled to get up from the kneeling position he found himself in, but a weakness seeped into his bones and caused moving to be a difficult endeavor. He was unsure if it was the unfamiliar mode of travel that did something to him or the planet's absence.

"What is this?" A voice echoed around him through the void. His mind wondered over this. Was there an invisible barrier that allowed for such acoustics to occur?

"He just followed me," Seiren said behind him. "He was rather rude about it. I may even bruise."

"Silence," the voice repeated. It took all his strength to lift his head toward the sound of the voice. A woman, imposing in gold armor and a steel stare, walked toward him from a dais. "I know he followed you. That much is obvious."

There were no more words from Seiren, and her silence set wrong in Minori.

"Let us see who you are, then." Strong fingers grabbed his hair and yanked, pulling Minori painfully tight and she inspected his face. Her gaze was cold and calculating as she brought up her other hand to trap his face in a tight grip. She turned his face this way and that, inspecting him, before she finally grinned. It was a cold expression, and such a feature should have enhanced her beauty, but instead it sent a void deep into his chest. "This is very interesting."

"He is the one, Galaxia. With the star seed we left behind."

Minori struggled in her grip. He did not know who this woman was, but he knew that she was not like the others. Where Seiren was aloof and perhaps a bit eccentric, this woman appeared to possess all of her faculties. It was that kind of insanity that he knew was the most dangerous.

"You mean that you failed to bring me," Galaxia corrected, jerking her hand in a way that stilled the boy's movements. "No matter, he's here now. And he's a most peculiar specimen."

"I'm not peculiar," he gritted out through clenched teeth. It came out sounding weird to his own ears with the way she held his face, but he held his ground.

"You aren't?" Galaxia asked before she laughed. "Do you even know what you are, little boy? An anomaly, nothing more." His heart pounded at her words as she brought him closer until her lips pressed against his ear. "Would you like to see?"

He shuddered as her breath hit his ear and slithered against his skin. "See what?"

"What it's supposed to look like."

Before he could answer, the space behind the dais tore open, revealing hundreds of thousands of seeds. Unlike his, they all sparkled with a light that screamed to be released. He focused in on one in particular, glowing a brilliant gold.

"I see you recognize it," she noted, realizing where his gaze laid. She released his face, causing all his weight to rest on the pulling grip she had on his hair. The seed came forward, waving back and forth in a futile resistance. "This is what it's supposed to look like."

"So? It looks the same as all the others," he pointed out, shifting so that one foot braced the floor beneath him.

Galaxia blinked at him before throwing her head back in laughter. "You honestly have no idea, do you?" Her grip shifted in his hair, still pulling him upright but he had the opportunity to brace for enough support to relieve the rest of the pull. "This is the star seed of Earth. Beautiful, isn't it? I was fortunate. With this out of the way, there was no one to stop me."

The seed shone brighter, engulfing him in a wave of gold light. He could see a plane and a man looking at a picture with a familiar girl. Then a light so bright it was blinding tore through the craft. He watched an all too brief fight as the man fought to the last, and heard his parting words.

Minori knew who he was, and now knew the reason why Usagi never received an answer to her letters. He felt an anger on her behalf pour through his veins. "You think that'd be enough? You know he was right, they will stop you."

"Of course you would say the same thing he did. After all-" Before she could finish, he launched himself up, using all his strength to leap past her. His hands closed around the bauble that meant so much to her, certain that if he got it away from her, there would be a chance to stop her.

It was hot in his hands, a burn that pulsed up his arms, but he held tight as the surprised of his movement forced Galaxia to let go of his hair.

As he landed, he felt a shift in the atmosphere around him. Something beside him popped and sizzled beside him, and with a glance up he saw three senshi emerged from a rift.

One of them, with short hair and a familiar face, blinked down at him. "Minori?"

He stared up at her, recognition slowly eking into his conscious mind. "Haruka?"

As the other two senshi stepped forward, his cousin grabbed him by the collar. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Protecting her," he shouted back.

"Of all the stupid…look, just stand back and let us handle this." She dropped him to the floor, where he landed in a grateful slump. His hair hurt, and his entire body ached. His hands were screaming at his brain to let the seed go, but he refused. He would get this away from Galaxia if it was the last thing he did.

xoxoxox

The paramedics arrived, making excellent time as they strapped the teacher in the gurney and carted him off. They made brief inquiries to the senshi, but left quickly. Starfighter kept her eyes on Sailor Moon, who continued to stare at the spot where Minori had been.

"We have to get to him," she said in a low voice. "Mercury? Is there any way?"

The blue haired girl shook her head as her fingers flew over a small keyboard. "No, I can't seem to triangulate their location."

"But we have to do something! We can't just-"

"We'll get him back, don't worry." Starfighter surprised herself by speaking up, but she could not stand to watch the normally cheerful girl acting so frantic.

Unfortunately her voice brought the attention on her, and soon she was bombarded by questions.

"Just what are _you_ doing here," Mars demanded, fists clenched.

She smirked and leaned against one of the remaining desks. "I had detention."

Mars gave her an incredulous look as she crossed her arms. "Really."

"Sure," Starfighter replied with a shrug. She was unsure whether or not she should say anything more, or if the girl would connect two and two.

It was not Mars who connected it, but Mercury. "If what you say is true, then that would make you…" The girl blushed, rosy cheeks flaring in a pretty manner. "Seiya?"

Everyone stopped at once and gave her an appraising eye. "What can I say? I'm a master of disguise."

She was surrounded then as inquisitive fingers poked here and there. One of them landed quite forcibly on her breast, and she squawked. "Do you mind? Yes, they're real."

"But…you're a boy." Makoto pointed out.

"Yes I was," she said. She fended off a curious hand as it traveled toward her shorts. "And no, I'm not." She felt a peculiar sensation on her backside. With a yelp, she grabbed the offending wrist and stared down at Venus. "Would you knock that off? What does that part have to do with anything?"

The girl's eyes widened. "You really _are_ Seiya! Then that means-"

"Starfighter, what the hell are you doing?" Everyone turned toward the door where Starmaker and Starhealer stood in the doorway.

"Like I had a choice? That lady just attacked us in the middle of detention!" The others were not pleased that she had revealed her identity, and by association theirs, but she stood by her belief that bad things would have happened otherwise.

"Wait, if you're you, then that means you know…" Mars turned toward Sailor Moon and clenched her teeth. "_Usagi!"_

The girl in question sniffled. "What does it matter, anyway? It's not like we stopped anything. They took Minori!"

Jupiter knelt beside the girl and whispered something while running soft circled on the girl's back. Sailor Moon nodded after a moment and wiped her eyes before offering a watery smile in return.

"What's so important about this guy, anyway?" Starhealer sneered as she kicked a piece of debris. "He's just a casualty."

"No he's not," Starfighter retorted before any could answer, memories of his identity swirling in her mind. Then she caught herself. Blushing, she gritted her teeth. "He was a civilian, caught on my watch. I promise I'll get him back."

Starmaker muttered something, but all Seiya could pick up was the word 'impetuous.' Then she glared at the senshi of this system. "This isn't our fight."

"But we have a similar goal," Sailor Moon pointed out. "If we team up, I know we can-"

"The answer is no," Starhealer said. "We'll leave you to clean your own mess. Come on, Starfighter."

"I can't," Seiya said after a beat of everyone staring at her. "It's as much my fault as anyone's that he was taken. What would I be if I didn't try to help?"

"This isn't our fight, Starfighter," Starmaker implored, her eyes wide as she urged her to join them.

"But who's to say it's no different?" she asked.

"Starfighter. It's not our fight."

Seiya sighed. There was no way to get her teammates to agree with her, at least not here and now. She needed to talk to them in private, get them to see what she knew. She walked over to her group and turned to look at Sailor Moon.

"Don't worry, Odango," she started. "I'll be back."

Her last image of the young girl before they took their leave was of her staring up, wide eyed and trusting.

xoxoxox

She blinked at the chaos around her. She had yet to be noticed, and doubted anyone would unless she spoke up. Chibi-Chibi, from outside the room, had fought her own tears as her suspicions about him were confirmed. He was gone and away, and now she could barely feel his presence.

Taking a deep breath, she strengthened her resolve as she felt her clothes shift and change into her uniform. She would find him, and bring him back. It was within her power to do so, but after she would be exhausted. He was already in another battle, though, one he had to fight alone and without the interruptions of this time.

Closing her eyes, she stepped out of the room and focused on him, and only him. It was not hard to do, really, she would know him anywhere. When she opened her eyes she whimpered. Other friends were fighting, keeping Galaxia away from the boy. She could bring them all back, bring them to herself, and then when she has rested, the fight could continue.

He looked up at her, looking so exhausted. This was not his place, or where he belonged, and she knew it weighed on him. "Chibi," she assured him, patting his cheek with a smile.

He offered her a tiny grin as he shook his head. "You're one too? I don't know why I'm not surprised."

Patting his cheek once again, she turned and hopped to where the other three were fighting. Galaxia fended off their attacks, but Chibi-Chibi knew that once she had the chance, the enemy would steal their glowing seeds.

"Chibi!"

Her young voice was enough to startle all of them as Galaxia stared down at her. "You."

"_Chibi!"_

Galaxia looked enraged, and if the young girl was honest with herself, very scary. Gulping, she took a step back. She could see the bracelets coming together, and when the bright light threatened to blind them all, she closed her eyes and focused. When she opened them again, the school hallways greeted them.

"What the hell happened?" Uranus asked. "What did you do?"

Chibi-Chibi whimpered and ignored the tall woman, going over to where he lay. His cheek rested against the floor. She grabbed his hand and tried to pry his fingers open, but his grip was strong even as he was almost unconscious.

Larger hands removed hers, and looking up she saw Uranus kneeling beside her. The hand was beginning to smolder, and the taller woman cursed. "Come on, you stubborn brat. Let go."

Finally his fingers uncurled, and Chibi-Chibi gasped at the seed that escaped. She recognized it as it whipped past and into the room where chaos still reigned. Whimpering, she burrowed into Uranus' side.

xoxoxox

Galaxia stormed back up to her dais, brimming with far too much tension to settle down. How dare that insolent man steal what was rightfully hers? She refused to allow this to go unpunished, and if she had her way, he would pay dearly for what he had done. She would not even give him the honor of being added to his collection. After all, his was useless, and why take something battered and bruised when she could have the rightful one in its place?

She felt the glow of the other seeds and closed her eyes, embracing their warmth. She had so many, and was so close to her goal. But that one had been special, and the man who it belonged to had defied her to the very end. It was those seeds that were the best, pulsed the brightest.

"Um, Lady Galaxia, would you like me to go after them?"

Seiren's voice grated through her nerves as she whipped around. "You brought him here. This is all your doing."

"I honestly do not see how," she said as she pondered over this fact. "After all, he was the one who shoved us both in the booth."

Sailor Lead Crow, who had returned from her own failed mission, stepped beside her rival. "Seiren, be silent!"

"What for? I am merely pointing out the truth."

"Hush, you fool!"

"Silence, the both of you!" Galaxia stood tall, hand poised.

"Please don't do this, we'll find them and bring back what they took, I swear!" It was not Seiren who pleaded for her life, but Lead Crow.

Galaxia allowed her hand to drop minutely and then smirked at Crow's obvious relief. Then, quicker than any of them could blink, shot it up, fingers outstretched toward her target.

Crow's screams as her friend disappeared from existence made her spine tingle with pleasure.

xoxoxox

Usagi stared at what floated in front of her. It glowed with a bright and familiar warmth, and her throat closed. "What is this?"

"I don't know," Makoto replied.

Usagi reached for it and brushed her fingers against the barrier surrounding it. She refused to allow her brain to wander, to think about what it was or where it came from.

Commotion at the door brought her attention away from the seed. Uranus rushed in, and to Usagi's immeasurable relief, Minori was in her arms. He was unconscious, or close to it, and that made her forget about the seed she did not want to know anyway.

"What happened, is he okay?" She asked as she rushed toward the two.

Uranus laid the boy on the teacher's desk. "I don't know, you tell me. How the hell did he end up there, anyway?"

"We can figure that out later," Neptune said as she placed a hand on Uranus' shoulder. "The important thing right now is to make sure he'll be okay."

"He just tackled her," Usagi offered, hovering around them. "Is he okay?"

"Chibi?"

Usagi looked down where Chibi-Chibi stood, leaning heavily against her knee. Bending, she picked the small girl and took in her outfit. Before she could ask, though, the young girl fell asleep against her shoulder.

"He's okay, just exhausted," Neptune assured everyone. She picked up his hand and inspected his hand. "However, it appears that whatever he brought back with him did not agree with being held."

Usagi looked and gasped at the burn on his palm. "Will it be okay?"

"I doubt it will scar," Neptune responded, pulling up the classroom's first aid kit. "However, it won't be healed for a couple weeks, I'm sure."

"I'll take notes for him," she promised.

There was a beat before the people around her started to giggle, but she ignored their humor. Instead she focused on Minori, running her fingers through his bangs. He cracked an eye open and regarded her for a long moment.

"I'm sorry," he croaked.

"Don't worry," she assured him. "You're fine, so that's all that matters, right?"

He shook his head. "No. I'm sorry for this." He gave a weak wave in the direction of the floating seed. "She said-"

"I don't want to know what she said," she bit out, feeling something trying to claw out of her chest.

"Usagi," he ground out.

"Okay kiddo, that's enough for now," Uranus said as she pushed his shoulder back down. "You need rest."

"What I need is for someone to listen," he said, trying to shout, but it came out more a pant instead. "It's why she's been able to do as she pleases here. She attacked him _first,_ cornered him someplace where he couldn't escape!"

"Stop it!" But he did not. He told them what he knew, what Galaxia had said. She did not want to hear this. Her knees shook, and even as she turned from him her traitorous ears hung on to every word. The more she heard, the closer she clung to the small girl in her arms.

The floor slapped her knees where she fell, and she barely had the presence of mind to set Chibi-Chibi down before the shaking became too hard for her to keep hold of him. She was aware she was talking, but she could not stop her tongue from calling out a name of a man who was dead.


	15. It All Unravels

**Rating:** PG-13

**Disclaimer: **I don't own them. If I did, there would have been even more angst in Sailor Stars.

**Summary:** In the attempt to save the royal family from temporal disaster, Pluto succeeds in saving only one. The only time they can go is a time where neither exists, a young girl hurts, and the ability to fix things is still within reach.

**AN: **We've come to the end of what I had already written. The semester is ending in two weeks, so this can go one of two ways. I will either hold off writing finishing this until the semester ends, or using it as an escape mechanism.

**Chapter Fifteen – **_It All Unravels_

* * *

><p>Seiya took a step back from the group as they exited the building. "I can't."<p>

"Come on, you know we're not here for them," Starmaker said.

"I know that," she responded. "But I don't think she'd want us to turn our backs on everyone else along the way."

"They're outsiders, Seiya. You know what happened the last time we allowed an outsider in."

She did. "But to them, _we're_ the outsiders. This isn't our home."

Her two compatriots shook their heads. "You're a stubborn ass, you know that?" Starhealer asked.

"Damn right I am," Seiya retorted with a step back toward the school. "Do what you want. I figure we have better odds of winning in a group rather than not."

Turning her back, she jogged back toward the building. She hoped, prayed, that the others would follow, but did not hold out for it.

xoxoxox

"Do you think she'll be able to handle it?" Uranus asked Neptune off in the far corner.

Neptune thought for a moment as she took in the crying girl. "She needs a few minutes to process what she has learned. She will come through."

"We don't have a few minutes, we need to strike _now,_" Uranus said as she struck the wall beside her. "Minori took something that Galaxia thinks belongs to her, and she won't just sit still. She's going to strike, and soon, and we need to get to her before she does."

"Let her be, Uranus." Neptune placed her hand on the other woman's arm, giving a soothing stroke. "Just for a few moments."

"We should have just stayed until we destroyed that woman," Uranus spat, still on edge. "If we had, things could go back to normal, and she never would have had to know."

"Keep your voice down," Neptune admonished.

It was too late, and the taller senshi was heard. "You knew?" Neptune turned to see Jupiter standing right behind them now. "You _knew?_"

Neptune sighed. "We knew something was amiss, yes."

"That's not what I asked," the senshi of thunder pointed out. "I asked if you knew about Mamoru."

She felt her shoulders sag as she tilted her head to one side.

Her reaction was enough for Jupiter. The teenager clenched her fist and stepped forward, prepared to strike. "How could you keep this from us? From her? _Why_ would you?"

"You weren't there," Haruka snapped. "You didn't see her reaction when she found out!"

"Usagi knew, and she didn't tell us?"

"She didn't get the chance! She woke up, and it's like she forgot everything!" Uranus accepted the silent challenge, bristled and ready for a fight. "_I_ couldn't see her go through that again!"

Jupiter stepped back, scoffing as she went. "So you decided for her, then."

"Do you think I wanted to know?" Uranus demanded. "I would have been plenty happy to go about without knowing what I do."

"And what else could you possibly know that you haven't told us?"

Neptune stepped between them before too much could be revealed. "We did what we thought was right, Jupiter. I am sorry we kept things from you."

"It's not me you should be apologizing to," she stated, arms crossed as she jerked her head toward Usagi.

"If we get through this, I will," Uranus shot back. "But right now, we have a war to win."

Neptune sighed when new movement caught her eye. Starfighter stood in the doorway, taking in the scene with confusion. What she was doing here was not relevant, but she felt her spine bristle.

"Uranus," she began, placing her hand on an elbow. "We have company."

"She's you're princess," Jupiter spat. "You can't just sweep Usagi's feelings aside like this!"

Neptune could only pray that the one piece of information she wished outsiders to know would not leak out onto unwanted ears, but the way Starfighter's head jerked proved her wrong.

"I am fully aware who she is, Jupiter. I've done _everything _I can to make sure she doesn't hurt any more than she has to."

"Well try harder, because obviously you failed!"

Neptune could only watch as Starfighter picked her way through fallen debris. "Usagi's your princess?" She demanded as soon as she was close enough to.

"Stay out of this, it has nothing to do with you." Uranus said.

"Like hell it doesn't!" Neptune could see the wheels turn inside the alien's eye. "She's you're princess. So that means that…shit."

"What, you knew, too?" Jupiter demanded.

"I found out by accident!" She shouted. "And it's not like I knew to keep it from _her!_"

"You should have told somebody," Jupiter said. "Something like this is obviously what one would tell a friend. They do have those where you're from, right?"

"How was I supposed to know who the hell your princess was? It's not like anyone was exactly forthcoming with information!" Starfighter rubbed her face with her hand. "Besides, what good would it have done, anyway? It's not like he remembers anything anyway."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Jupiter growled. "Mamoru's star seed is not something you should have kept from us!"

"Woah, what the hell are _you_ talking about?" Starfighter asked. Then she jerked her thumb toward the desk. "I was talking about Minori."

Neptune felt the color drain from her face. "Can we please stop this? It isn't helping matters any."

"No, I don't want to stop this. What about Minori?" Jupiter demanded, grabbing Starfighter by the strap. "Talk fast you gender confused asshole, before I make you glad you're in this form."

"If you're so desperate to know, why don't you ask Pluto?" Starfighter suggested, looking more irritated at being threatened than anything. She then knocked aside the offending hand and stormed over to where Usagi was.

"This is quickly falling apart, Uranus," Neptune whispered, wishing she could turn back the weeks to when everything was peaceful and she was blissfully ignorant of what was going on.

"If she finds out now, what will she do?" Uranus asked, never taking her eyes off of Jupiter. Then she directed her speech toward the younger girl. "It's best you don't know this. Stop asking."

"I won't," Jupiter said. Neptune recognized the stance, the obstinate refusal to relent, having had seen it plenty of times on her partner before.

"Then I suggest you ask Pluto, because we are not saying another word."

xoxoxox

Makoto had to leave the small, cramped room. Even the outside air was too enclosed as night swallowed her.

She had pulled Pluto aside and demanded her answers, stating she knew there was something they refused to tell her.

She wished she had listed to Uranus, because now she wished she never even woke up this morning. She wanted to still be in bed, alone in her apartment, with only school and shopping to look forward to. Now she had a choice to make.

It would be so easy to let this be Usagi's only news of the day, to pretend she knew nothing. It would be easy to be a horrible friend and spare her friend just that much more pain. Because knowing what she knew would hurt her young friend even more than she already was.

"Sailor Jupiter?" Makoto's head jerked up at the sound of her name. Luna stood several feet from her, eyes glowing in the moonlight. "Are you alright?"

She wiped her dry eyes. As much as she wanted, she could not cry. She knew Mamoru. They weren't best friends, they never hung out outside of moments where they shared Usagi's company, and though he reminded her of her ex she knew he was worlds better. She knew him, and the knowledge that he was gone hurt. And that Minori, the kid who barely remembered his name, was involved as he was, made the whole situation so much worse.

"Luna, what would you do? If you knew something you knew would hurt your friend?" She carefully asked. She wasn't yet sure what she would do with this information, so she had to take care in how she worded things. There was still something she could tell the cat, to prepare her for their princess' grief. "Mamoru's gone."

Luna gasped, coming forward to place a paw on Makoto's knee. "Gone? How do you mean?"

So she told the cat all she knew about that, glad to have something to take her mind off the other thing, mad that it had happened.

By the end, the cat's wide eyes glistened. "Poor Usagi. How is she? Where is she?"

"But Luna," she started, wanting to pound out the ache in her chest. "What do I do? I know something that could make it worse, but she _needs_ to know."

"What is it you know?" The cat demanded.

Makoto shook her head. "No. If I tell this, I must tell her first. This isn't something I want everyone else knowing and her being the last to know."

"Is it important for her to know, or important for you to tell her?" When Makoto blinked in confusion, Luna sighed. "Are you wanting to tell her because she needs to know, or is it something that you just can't keep from her?"

"I don't know," she admitted. "It's going to hurt her, Luna. People have been keeping something from her, people she trusts."

Luna regarded her in the moonlight. "I think the only one that can answer that question is you, Makoto. I trust your judgment." The cat turned sadly to the building. "I need to check on her, make sure she's okay."

"I think she needs that, Luna," Jupiter replied. Sometimes there was a comfort an animal could give, talking or not, that exceeded that of a human's.

When the cat left, Makoto leaned back on the palm of her hands and stared up at the night sky. She had a lot to think about.

xoxoxox

Venus loved Sailor Moon, every part of her. Usagi was her best friend, though she knew she did not share the same title. It was okay, though, because even though she knew that, she also knew that Usagi loved her more than anyone on this Earth could. When she laughed, Minako wanted to laugh. When she cried true tears, it tore Venus to shreds. So it was no wonder that whenever her friend's heart shattered into a thousand pieces, hers was not far behind.

"Usagi," she tried once again, rocking the girl back and forth. "Can you get up yet?"

Once again she was met by silence. Aside from crying, and a name of a man who could not answer, Usagi said nothing.

She felt something fury nudge against her arm. Pulling back, she saw Luna as she crawled between them. The cat braced her hind legs on Minako's bare thighs and pushed up, nudging her charge's cheek with her small pink nose. "Usagi," was all the cat said.

Usagi crushed the cat to her, and Minako knew the animal must have been resisting all of her instincts of flight. Instead, the cat rested her head on the girl's shoulder and gently purred.

Kneeling back, Minako wiped her own eyes as she took in everyone around her. Pluto and Mercury were attending to Minori, Mars glared out the window to the street below, and Uranus and Neptune stood off in the far corner conversing. Needing to do something, anything, she cleared her throat.

When she went unnoticed, she cleared it again, louder, followed by a barking order. "We need to figure out what to do next." Though not officially the leader in this life, sometimes her past position poked its way through her defenses.

Everyone turned to look at her, all save Usagi. Even Luna rolled her eyes up to look at Minako. "Minori will be fine for a few minutes, but we should let him rest. We should discuss what we are going to do. The room next to this one is always unlocked, so we'll meet in there. Mars, help me with Sailor Moon."

The others, including the three from the outer system, followed her command.

With the help of Mars, she managed to get Usagi to her feet. The girl wobbled a bit, but with effort managed to remain standing and allowed the two to guide her. They were last to leave the room, except for Starfighter who still crouched where Usagi had been. "Hey, I said everyone, buster."

Starfighter looked up in surprise. Then, smiling, the male idol turned senshi female (or was it the other way around?) stood and followed the two out of the room.

Once in the next room, whose lock had been broken some months by an irate and hormonal male student, Minako led Usagi to a desk and allowed her to slide down. It mirrored the other room, and the way it was still whole was eerie.

"Well, what's the plan?" Uranus demanded.

Minako stood and stared at them all. Then she grinned and rubbed the back of her head. "Well, I was hoping someone else had an idea."

There was a collective groan, which she ignored. "Look, we have to come up with something. I don't know about you guys, but I do know Galaxia needs to be brought down."

Uranus cracked her knuckles. "I feel up to that task."

"Teach her she doesn't mess with this Solar System," Mars agreed as Mercury shifted the sleeping Chibi-Chibi on her hip.

"No." The opposition was so quiet that Minako was unsure she heard it. Turning, she saw Usagi staring down at the desk in front of her. "No more."

"Usagi," Luna began. "This isn't like our normal enemies."

"I said no," she said again, her voice gaining strength. When she looked up, Minako had to force herself to maintain eye contact. "There's been too much death already. We're finding another way."

"Even after what she did to Mamoru?" Mars demanded, causing Venus to wince.

"Especially after what she did to…" Usagi trailed off, clenching her fists on the desk. Then she looked up again. "I refuse to kill anyone."

"What do you propose, Kitten?" Uranus gently asked. "I don't think she'll respond well to past stories and hands of friendship."

"We have to try. There has to be a way, a _reason_ for this. I won't just accept that this has all been for nothing!" She deflated after her outburst, scrubbing her eye with the back of her hand. "There has to be a reason."

"Sometimes there isn't," Neptune pointed out.

"That's because we never try hard enough!" She snapped. "We just assume everyone is evil and has no reason, but there's always one. I _won't_ do this anymore! I won't just take lives because it's convenient!"

Minako stared at her friend. She could understand why. Usagi was not a violent person by nature, and never enjoyed the more grisly chores her powers brought. Sometimes it was a wonder the girl could still laugh. Still, to do what she proposed, especially after all that Galaxia had taken from her. In that instant, Venus could see the princess she had given her life for countless times. "Okay."

"Venus, it's impossible," Mars protested.

Venus ignored her and knelt before Sailor Moon. "We'll try it your way, Usagi. We will do everything we can. We will follow your lead. Just promise me, if it comes down to it, if there's no other way, you do what needs to be done." When the girl opened her mouth to protest Minako held up her hand. "Only if it needs to be done."

The girl slowly nodded in response, to which Minako grinned. "Good." Standing up, she cracked her knuckles. "Well then, now that that's decided."

"We have company," Uranus noted.

Turning, Minako saw Starmaker and Starhealer standing in the doorway. With a smile, she jerked her head, motioning them to join the group.

Though they stood distance from the group, they were still here. And, the way Minako figured it, the more help they had the better.

xoxoxox

With the others out of the room, giving Minori a chance to rest, the destroyed room grew an eerie calm. He did not like the feeling of being alone, and he knew there was something he was missing.

He hated that he had been the one to tell Usagi, or that there had been something of that caliber that she had to have been told. It was something he could not just see keeping from her, no matter how much he knew it would hurt her. But seeing her like that, the way she reacted, he wished with everything he was that he could take it all back.

He lifted his hand and stared at the scorched palm. It would not scar, or so he had been told, but he wondered if it had been worth it. What use would bringing a glittering bauble be, anyway? Turning, he glared at the object of his current scorn. "This is all your fault anyway. Why couldn't you have just been a cheating bastard like any other college student?"

The star seed just glittered on, doing nothing. "That's what I thought, you damn bastard." Shifting, he turned from the offending thing and shut it from his mind completely. "You never deserved her, anyway."

A shadow fell over him. Looking down toward the door, he saw Jupiter silhouetted in the door way. "They're in the next room over discussing tactics."

"I know," she said as she stepped in. He followed her, turning as she came to rest before Mamoru's star seed. Curiously, he watched as she cupped it in the palm of her hand, tensing as he waited for the yelp of pain he knew she was feeling. She did not even wince.

"Then why are you here?" He asked.

"Minori," she started, turning to look at him. The look in her eye was hard with determination, and her fingers shook. "There's something I need to tell you."


	16. Truth

**Rating:** PG-13

**Disclaimer: **I don't own them. If I did, there would have been even more angst in Sailor Stars.

**Summary:** In the attempt to save the royal family from temporal disaster, Pluto succeeds in saving only one. The only time they can go is a time where neither exists, a young girl hurts, and the ability to fix things is still within reach.

**AN: **You're not gonna flog me for glossing over the fights, right? I mean, it's not what the story is actually about, right? Right? Also, we're coming to an end. I estimate that the next chapter is the last one, but I could be wrong.

**Chapter Sixteen – **_Truth_

* * *

><p>Minori stared at Jupiter. Her words were a jumbled mess in his mind as they turned and forced their way into his mentality. What she was suggesting was both crazy and absurd.<p>

"You expect me to believe this?"

Jupiter's leveled gazed was hard as stone. "Of course not, but you had to know."

"But it doesn't make any sense. Haruka is my cousin, Setsuna is my caretaker. What reason would they have to keep this from me?"

"Haruka is as much your cousin as she is Michiru's," Jupiter said. "And when it comes down to it, everything makes sense."

"What about this makes any sort of sense?" he demanded.

"Just shut up and listen for a second, would you?" she said. "Your arrival was always odd. We thought you worked for the enemy, but that was ruled out. You were never exactly the most forthcoming about anything. Then the way you were with Usagi? Cold and distant but always around her?"

"I was never that way," he protested.

"Trust me, you were. She didn't really see it, of course. And then there's the interesting tidbit about your memory loss." Jupiter stood with her arms crossed as she stared down at him. "Tell me. Why is it she is the only person you remember? A girl you supposedly only met just a short while ago?"

The logic she presented was so absurd and radical, but doubt kept him from denying it. Even still, his own self-preservation refused to allow him the thought that he was not supposed to exist. "I am not Chiba Mamoru. I am Shinji Minori."

Jupiter bit her lip as she kneeled down in front of him. Their eyes were level and he wanted to hide away from the sympathy he saw there. "You're right, you're not Chiba Mamoru. You're a misplaced king who watched his family die."

"My family died in a fire," he spat out. "I did watch them die."

"That is what Setsuna told you. Do you want to know what really happened?"

Even as he shook his head he wanted to know. His mind refused to shut her out.

"You had a wife and a daughter and you watched them turn to dust."

Pink hair flashed in his mind as he jerked away. "What are you talking about? I'm sixteen years old!"

Jupiter stood. "You are centuries old, you ruled by Serenity's side, and it is _time_ for you to stop hiding!"

"I am not hiding!" He stood and backed away as he cradled his arm to his chest. "Why are you telling me this?"

"Because she is hurting right now and the only one who can fix this is you!"

"If I could I would fix it this instant, but Mamoru is dead, and according to you I'm not even him!"

"Mamoru is Endymion, and that makes him you!" Jupiter swiped something off the table and held it up for him to see. "Look at this! Why else could you have made it?"

The flower was still pristine even after the chaos, its closed bud drawing the color from the room. "A rose? What's so special about a rose?"

"Please stop fighting this! Only you can help her, you've always been the only one who could! She needs you right now, damn it, and you're too busy hiding to hear her calling for you!"

"Jupiter." The voice caused both to turn to the doorway where Pluto stood. "It is time for us to go now."

"Setsuna," he began as relief welled in his chest. "Tell her who I am. Tell her I'm not who she thinks I am."

Pluto remained silent as her gaze caught on the floor.

"Tell him, Pluto," Jupiter demanded.

With a sigh the woman stepped into the room as she looked at him. "You are Endymion, and you are my king."

His legs hollowed as he slid to the floor. Minori could not watch as Jupiter and Pluto left. All he could think about was that everything he knew was a lie, and he had no idea how to fix things.

xoxoxox

They went in on a wave of power that swiftly petered off to a whimper.

Sailor Lead Crow was the first to fall. Her thirst for revenge reverberated through the thin air as she cried out for the last time. Uranus stood over the spot the woman had been, eyes darkening on a prone Neptune.

Mars was next, her flaming arrow dissipating in a cloud of mist as Galaxia tore her seed from her chest. Then came Mercury, followed by Jupiter.

Uranus and Neptune went nearly simultaneously as the force from Galaxia's bracers slammed through one then came back and took the other. Pluto did not even see her end.

Then, all that was left was Sailor Moon, Chibi-Chibi, and Galaxia.

xoxoxox

Images that had always stayed in dreams swirled through his mind. Minori did not know what was real and what was not anymore. A headache pressed sharp into his eyes as he struggled to shove everything aside in favor of fear for Usagi, but the annoyance of not remembering kept reining his brain away.

On top of it all, his only company was that of a cat that would not stop staring at him.

He had lost count of how many times he stood and limped to the window, and was not even sure if the night sky was an appropriate place to check for their return, but he found himself there once again. His reflection obscured the view even through the dark of the room and more than anything he wished he could smash the thick pane to pieces.

"They'll be alright," a small voice sounded from behind him.

Jumping, Minori turned to the still near empty room. The cat stared up at him, her face expectant.

He really should learn not to be surprised anymore by anything. Turning again, he sighed as he leaned his forehead against the window.

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because I know Sailor Moon."

Even a cat had substantial memories. If she knew Usagi, then it was very likely that she knew more about him than he did.

"Do you know who I am?" he asked, not wanting to hear her answer.

The air stilled in silence before she responded. "I know you're a friend of Usagi's."

He turned just enough to see her, still pressed against the glass. "Do you know who they say I am?"

The small feline stepped forward as her head cocked to one side. A very human reaction for a cat.

xoxoxox

Chibi-Chibi hated violence. She hated death. She hated losing her loved ones even more.

Sailor Moon stood before her, taking the brunt of each attack. Chibi-Chibi wondered if the girl realized just how much of a rift in power there was between them, or would be had she her own body.

This was her chance to make things right, to correct the wrongs she had done in a past future. This could also be the end of everything.

However, as she looked up the long leg of the young teenage girl, and saw a flicker of a familiar power she should not recognize for a life time or two, Chibi-Chibi knew that this would turn out as it should have before.

xoxoxox

"What do I do?" he asked, hating that he was begging an animal for answers. She had not spoken a word since he had revealed who he was, and part of him wondered if he had just imagined her talking.

Luna's mouth opened for a moment before it closed again, her large eyes glowing in the starlight.

Minori slid down to the ground, back firm against cinderblock. The feline crept closer until her paw rested on his knee.

"I don't even know if there's anything I can do, even if I wanted to," he added. Then he stared at her, her fur blurring into the dim light. "What do I do?"

Her head lowered as she gazed at her paw. "I can't answer that."

"Why not?" he demanded. "I'm at a loss for what I'm supposed to do, so any opinions would be greatly welcome right about now.

"Because anything I say will be selfish," Luna whispered before looking up at him. "Anything I say will be for the sake of Usagi."

"I can make her happy," he said.

Luna nodded. "Yes, and you have."

"Then why do I feel so miserable?" he asked.

Luna brought her other paw to his leg and stood closer until they were almost touching noses. "Because he is the one she loves."

"But I'm real, and he's dead."

"Are you trying to convince me, or yourself?"

xoxoxox

Sailor Moon held the sword in a tight grip. She had never been one for sharp instruments and had been given several worried glances from her mother whenever it was her turn to dice the vegetable for dinner.

Her legs were weak as her lungs ached. Her body tried to tell her that now was the time to give up. It would be so easy. Everyone was gone now, turned to nothing more than stardust and seed. No one would blame her, considering all that she had gone through to reach this point.

It was not enough, though. Her body felt weak, but her mind was sharpened more than it had ever been. They were gone, her friends, but she could still feel them around her, giving her strength. It was not like before, when their remaining psyches came to grant their aide. It was their memory.

"Will you fall like the rest?" Galaxia asked.

Sailor Moon looked up from the hilt of the sword, remembering her promise to Venus. She knew she should end the life before her, knew it would end it all now. As she watched her enemy, however, she could not help the twinge of empathy tangling within her. Even as she stood in this cold and barren wasteland, she could still feel everything.

She could hear Ami's logical voice explain things that made no sense, smell Makoto's kitchen after an afternoon of baking. Rei's voice scolded in one ear while Minako giggled in the other. She felt the safety of a Saturday night at Michiru and Haruka's apartment just as surely as she felt Mamoru's arms. They were all there with her even as they were gone.

"Will you?" Galaxia questioned again.

This person had nothing but death and corpses for company, while Usagi had everything. It made her heart ache as she stood, the strength returning to her limbs.

"No," she answered. "And neither will you."

She knew that as Sailor Moon she had the power to destroy. She had done so in the past to enemies less dangerous. She had been young, then, the world more black and white. But with all she knew now, she knew she would never take another life.

"In the end, you're alone. What do you hope to do without any of your friends around you?"

Usagi smiled. She felt no hate or fear as she flew forward, sword falling from her grip.

xoxoxox

"You know the worst part about not remembering what everyone else know?" he asked.

Luna purred.

"I don't know if what everyone is telling me is in actuality the truth, or if they want it to be truth."

"I'm not sure I follow," Luna said.

Minori grabbed a piece of rubble from the ground, gripping the course edges in his palm. "I don't know if he's really this great guy you tell me about, or if you're glossing it over because he's dead."

"He has his flaws," Luna admitted. "He's young, can be stupid and stubborn both, and will go so far as to break up with Usagi if it means protecting her."

"That doesn't sound too bad," he started, but was cut off as she continued.

"He's too lenient with her when he knows she should be studying, he keeps her distracted when she should be focused, his timing in fights and his resulting speeches leave some to be desired, he's prone to memory loss and mental subjugation, he is a bit hesitant to share when something is bothering him, which often times results in the aforementioned troubles, is too unsure of his birthright, can be too secretive, and he lacks the ability to cooperate on a team," she added.

Minori blinked at her. "Wow, is there anything else I should know about?"

Luna thought for a moment. "He can be far too serious at times, although please don't tell Usagi I told you I thought this."

Minori stared at Luna for a long moment. "It doesn't sound as though you like him all that much."

The feline snorted as she cleaned her paw. "Don't be ridiculous. He's a flawed young man and it would be ridiculous if he were perfect. I could give you a longer list of things I find wrong with Usagi, and I love her."

"He doesn't deserve her," Minori said.

Luna nodded. "I agree with you. However, I am biased. No one deserves Usagi."

He glared at the only source of light in the room. The seed hung in the air, off in its own corner, alone. "You're still a bastard."

xoxoxox

There was no defeat of Galaxia. Instead, it was more of a victory against a force attacking the both of them.

Sailor Moon stood, now alone as Galaxia was finally freed of the rage and chaos inside her. It was not until this moment when she finally felt what she refused to think about while fighting.

She was alone.

Then, one by one, her friends returned to her. Their seeds restored them to their original self. Her heart swelled as she became lost in a sea of familiar faces and felt arms around her.

Still, despite being surrounded by those she loved, she still felt that empty place as one person was not returned to her.

xoxoxox

"What are you going to do?" Luna asked.

"I don't even know what I can do," Minori said.

The cat shook her head. "I think you know some options, you just don't want to think about them."

Minori jerked forward, grabbing for the cat but missing her as she leaped back. "There are no other possibilities! I'm alive and he's dead. I'm _alive!_"

"I never said you weren't," Luna said.

"Then don't tell me there's any other option," he ground out. "It's my turn to live."

Even as he said this, something twisted deep in his gut. Something he did not want to think about.


	17. Return

**Rating:** PG-13

**Disclaimer: **I don't own them. If I did, there would have been even more angst in Sailor Stars.

**Summary:** In the attempt to save the royal family from temporal disaster, Pluto succeeds in saving only one. The only time they can go is a time where neither exists, a young girl hurts, and the ability to fix things is still within reach.

**AN: **This is the last chapter. Go to the end for all of my notes.

**Chapter Seventeen – **_Return_

* * *

><p>Chibi-Chibi hated long good byes. At least, she thought she did.<p>

She had done her duty. What had not been done in the future had been fixed in the past, she had guided those she could home, and now all that remained was a fate that was not her decision to make.

She knew, as she drifted away from the warriors below, that things would work out. They would go back to being as they should. Chibi-Chibi was uncertain of her own future now, and that delighted as well as frightened her small body.

She left them then, her body coalescing with the universe around her until she was once more a part of it. Stars beckoned to her soul, seeking out aide for rebuilding and protection, and she gladly stretched out her hands to help them all.

xoxoxox

Luna left Minori as she raced from the room. She had felt the change in pressure along her fur the moment it happened, and she knew.

The next classroom was exactly as it had been when she left, and standing there now were her girls. All of her girls.

Talking with the boy had distracted her from the terror that had nestled in her bones, but seeing them there, battered yet alive, her limbs trembled as she launched into Usagi's arms.

Though she said nothing, Luna knew her charge was hurting despite their victory. There was a palpable absence around them, even she could feel it.

The others were loud around them. Uranus and Starfighter argued, Starmaker and Starhealer spoke amongst themselves, and the other girls were just generally loud and cheerful after the adrenaline of their success.

Only Usagi was quiet, and Luna could feel the fur of her back dampening as the girl tried to stifle her sniffles.

It was by chance she saw him lurking in the doorway. Minori lingered for a moment, taking each of the girls in as though assessing that they were really all okay. He listened to their conversations, and she knew he understood what had happened. Then he left, as quickly and quietly as he came, and Luna could focus once again on the girl who held her.

Luna knew what she wanted to happen. She felt horrible for thinking it, but as shaking arms crushed her ribs, she realized she would think it for a thousand years to come.

xoxoxox

He had hoped that with their return the seed would change. It still twinkled in the pale moonlight, devoid of any indication that a man had once been what it now was.

Minori stared at the seed across the room. "You're time has passed. There's no reason for you anymore."

He had been struggling with his inner thoughts ever since the others returned, back from the dead, all save for Usagi. She had never even died, and had gotten the happy ending she had wanted. The only star seed left was Mamoru's, and perhaps it was the most important.

He did not need Pluto to tell him why Mamoru had not reappeared. Galaxia had given him the answer before he even knew the question. He was an anomaly, something that had no right to exist in this time and place.

Yet he did not want to leave. He was alive, breathing, whereas this seed belonged to a man who should be dead. Who said Minori could not live in his place? They were the same person, technically, and he knew that in time perhaps Usagi would forgive him.

"_No!_" He screamed, clutching his head. "It isn't fair!"

He wanted to live. He wanted to spend his life on Earth with the people he had come to care about. He wanted to give Usagi his notes in class even knowing she would not study them. He wanted to annoy Seiya. He still had to finish Setsuna's guest house.

"What gives you the right?" He demanded the seed that had begun to blur in his field of vision. "What makes you so damn special that I have to give up everything? I'm _alive!_"

His seed would last well past his death, even as degraded as it was. There was a good chance he would be an old man before it completely lost its shine. He knew this without being told. He could live, survive, and he knew he could make her happy given the chance. He would spend an eternity trying.

"Minori?" Usagi stood in the doorway, still dressed as Sailor Moon. "What are you doing?"

It took only one look at her face to realize the answer, what he had to do. Despite her concern for him, he could see how much she was hurting.

"You know, it's funny," he started. "If they're to be believed, this is the fourth time."

"The fourth time for what?"

It was the fourth time he had fallen in love with her. He wanted to tell her, but the words stuck hard in the lump in his throat.

"Do me a favor," he said instead. "Don't do anything stupid. I thought a lot about this, and this is the only way. So don't go blaming yourself, alright?"

"Blaming myself for what, Minori?" She asked, wary and timid. "The only way for what? You're kind of scaring me."

"The only way for you to be happy," he told her. "This was my choice."

Before she could ask another question, before his resolve could waver, he grabbed on to the seed. It burned his already injured palm as though it knew what he was about to do. He took a breath, pausing a moment. He was terrified of the pain, of what came after. Would he cease to exist?

Her voice calling his name steeled his resolve. He had to do this fast or else she would try to stop him. He knew she would. He thought for a split second, though. This was not dying exactly, was it? Technically Endymion had ceased to be so that he could be, yet Endymion was not really dead. Neither would he be, he hoped. Death would never play a part in this, would never keep him from her.

He turned to get one final look at her. "Not even death," he whispered, vowing that he would not scream.

He slammed the seed against his chest, holding it tight into place.

As it tore through skin and muscle, burrowed through bone, returning in an unnatural way, he screamed.

xoxoxox

_Lost. For so long, he had been lost. He did not know how long, but now he knew who and what he was. It was too late, now, as he watched the scene unfold before him. He was no longer a part of his body, having been pushed out for something new, something pure._

"_Endymion."_

_That was his name. That was who he was._

_He turned from the sight before him to the window. She stood there, the light casting a shimmering ray about her, and his breath caught in his throat._

_He could not speak as he moved toward her. She was here, and as real as he was, and he had never hoped to see her again._

_She smiled at him, her eyes never leaving his as she picked up his wrist to button his undone cufflinks._

"_Serenity," was all he could say as the light swallowed them both._

xoxoxox

He had been floating in nothing and going insane with it. He had died before but it had never been like this. He would just be dead one moment and alive the next with no knowledge of the in between. Now, though, he remembered everything, and all there had been was nothing.

He wondered if it was a fluke, an anomaly in space and time, or if the scholars and philosophers had been wrong, that there was no life after this one. Or perhaps this was a form of hell, whether that as described in _Dante's Inferno,_ or maybe of another religious belief altogether.

He was not sure how long he had been there, or remembered why. Things left him, here and there, until he was as empty on the inside as he was the out. All that remained were flashes of golden hair and sunny smiles, and when those came he clung tight until they inevitably drifted away. His heart, if he had one anymore, ached in those moments as he reached for those images and played the last word he spoke in life over and over in his mind until it had lost all meaning.

Then it happened.

The return to life was not slow and gradual but sudden, tearing through his veins in an intense searing burn that would have made him scream had his lungs wanted to cooperate.

There was something wrong with him. His entire body was moving and contorting, stretching his skin and ripping through his muscles. His brain, already overloaded at his body's exclamations and signals of pain, could barely process the onslaught as his memories bombarded through his skull. Things he had forgotten, memories that haunted, every waking moment and every nightmare that left him screaming, each and every nuance of his life shoved its way to the memory centers of his brain.

The pulling, twisting sensations stopped, leaving every nerve ending in his body screaming. He had to concentrate to breath, continuously focusing on one breath, then another, and struggling through the pain.

He collapsed, the muscles in his body weak and exhausted, and the cold floor burned through his nervous system.

He heard a sound, realized he had been hearing it for a while, but he could not force his brain to focus long enough to place it. Something touched his shoulder, and it should have been soft but his brain registered it as a stabbing knife. Gasping in a lungful of breath, he jerked away, rolling up at his muscles' protestations.

White boots met his focusing eyes as he struggled to get up off his knees. His arms could barely support his weight as he knelt there on the cold tile. Instead, he lifted his head into the glaring light, catching the silhouette of a winged figure. Then she stepped forward, shielding his sensitive eyes to the blinding light, and he saw her. Golden hair, and behind her hands he knew was where the sunny smiles should have been but were not.

Then he remembered what would happen next, the disappearances that always came after, and he lunged forward to reach out for her. His fingers closed around the loose fabric of her skirt as he pulled forward, the momentum closing the gap between him. The soft fabric of her gloves scoured his skin where they fluttered, leaving scorching trails in their wake. He clutched to her regardless, wishing to tear the wings away so he could grip closer. She held him fast, not going anywhere as her hands settled down his back and gripping his hair. He was not sure who was trembling, him from exhaustion or her from something else.

His eyes fluttered closed as his mind settled, face pressed against her hard broach, but he refused to move in case she disappeared from him again. Holding her was like a tether, and in him everything slowed as the storm in his mind calmed. Memories went where they were needed and he no longer had to think about breathing.

As his mind settled, a thick haze weighed heavily down. But Mamoru knew he liked chocolate, knew he feared needles. He knew his favorite flower was the rose, and that forget-me-nots meant love. He also knew the girl in his arms was crying, and her tears hurt more than her gloves.

Still, he exhaled a shaky sigh as he clung tighter and whispered a name that he had said so many times that the meaning came rushing back.

xoxoxox

Setsuna had expected to find Usagi and Minori speaking in the next room. She had not considered the fact that Minori would have done what he had, at least not so soon. She also had not expected to be greeted by so _much_ of Mamoru.

Neptune found some blankets in the nurse's office, and Uranus had reluctantly left to find clothes at his apartment. Her recent foray into the man's apartment made her more familiar that most with the layout and content of his home.

Mamoru did not resist Pluto's guiding hand to one of the few desks that remained standing, but in the few seconds that had them separated he kept staring at Usagi as though she would disappear any second. Then the young girl resumed her clinging, and everything seemed okay.

That was a lie. Mamoru, always quiet to begin with, said nothing among the chaos around him. The only indicator that he was actually aware of his surroundings was that he never took his eyes off Sailor Moon. Setsuna took his face in her hand and checked him over, worried about the pale pallor of his skin.

As she took in familiar signs, time around her sizzled and sparked. Things were readjusting and realigning and healing. There would be scars, differences that would not have been there before, but overall she knew the future would be much the same as it had been. Once again time had healed itself.

She felt a shadow fall over her. Turning, she saw Uranus standing over her with a pile of clothes in hand. "They were in a box marked 'bathroom.'"

Mamoru was coherent enough to be able to dress himself after Pluto pulled the others from the room. Setsuna left the girls standing in the hallway and entered the other room, sliding into a desk and rest her head in her palms.

She was not sure how she felt. She wanted to cry, for the loss and joy and countless other emotions swirling in her head. It was now as it should be, and she had succeeded in her goal. Her king's desire to save a young girl and spare her heartache was more or less complete. So why then did she feel an overwhelming sense of loss?

"Kitten ran back in soon as he was dressed," Uranus said as she entered the room. "I'm surprised you didn't hear the crash."

Her lips curled at the edges. "It seems we don't need to worry about her now."

"We may need to keep an eye on him for a while, still," Uranus said. "He's a bit off."

"He'll be fine," Setsuna said. "Time is now as it should be."

xoxoxox

Seiya hated goodbyes. They were too mushy and touchy feely for her tastes. However, seeing Odango one last time was a good thing.

Of course, Chiba was right there. He was more aware of his surroundings now, alert and not nearly as pale. He stood behind Usagi, quiet and calm and always there. For the first time, Usagi's smile reached her eyes.

Seiya hated his guts.

Her own princess was once more with them. Their planet was still decimated but they could rebuild. Princess Kakyuu's abilities were great, and soon their home would be as it had been, if not better.

With one last look, as Usagi's eyes filled with confusion at the teasing of the others, all Seiya could think was that she hoped this girl would be happy. If not, she would come here personally and wipe the floor with that boyfriend's face.

xoxoxox

_The closet door was open._

_Usagi stared inside, wondering why it had been so hard to open it in the first place._

"_You didn't want to know," a small voice sounded beside her._

_Chibi-Usa stood next to her, her face as sharp and clear as it had been in life._

"_If I'd know, I could have done something," Usagi said._

"_But you did. You knew, but you locked it away." Chibi-Usa hopped on the bed, legs swinging back and forth and her feet kicked the mattress._

_Usagi chewed her lip. There was something she did not want to know, but she needed to. "Were you really gone?"_

_Chibi-Usa nodded. "I was being forgotten. Soon, I would have been gone."_

_Usagi swallowed the hard lump in her throat. "How did you survive?"_

_The younger girl smiled as a faint blush stole across her cheeks. "I was kept safe."_

"_How? You didn't exist anymore."_

"_Everything is safe in dreams, Usagi," Chibi-Usa replied. "It took a while, but he found me. He'll always find me."_

"_I'm glad," Usagi said. "Are you back home now? Safe and sound?"_

_Chibi-Usa giggled. "Why are you asking me? I'm just a dream."_

xoxoxox

_Minori._ The name felt weird on his tongue whenever he tried to force it through his vocal chords.

Mamoru had no memories of the young boy who had been him but not. Though she never told him, he knew Usako hurt whenever he admitted this, so he stopped bringing the subject up altogether.

Two weeks had gone by since his return. He still had a lot of paperwork to do regarding his absence in America, and there had been some inquiries into his disappearance on the plane that was just now coming out. He needed to fill out the forms and soon, but he just could not bring himself to open the thick manila envelope they had arrived in.

Instead, he found other ways to take up the countless hours in the day. His apartment was now unpacked, Usako came over whenever she called to ask if she could, but even then, the days were too long and the nights even longer.

He was not sure what compelled him to come here of all places. He had never even been inside the small building, or even talked much with anyone outside of Usako since his return. Still, here he was with a paint roller in hand and completing a job that had been half finished. There was a promise he did not remember making in these rickety walls. If he kept at it, the small little shack on Setsuna's property would be functional once more.

-end

_End Notes: So many billions of thanks go to **Antigone2**. If not for her continual support and gentle prodding, this story never would have gotten past the fourth chapter. A big thanks to everyone who reviewed. I am terrible at responding, because I never know what to say, but I cherished them all. (If you can picture a dragon hoarding a great treasure, that's pretty much how my brain regards reviews.)_

_This ending was actually the one I had in mind since the beginning. Along the way, I tried to think of other ways to end this, but they all seemed cheap and far too deus ex machina. _

_Thank you all for reading, and I hoped you enjoyed it at least half as much as I did writing it. :)_


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